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MEMOIRS  OF  A  CAVALIER 

INTRODUCTION    BY 

G.  A.  AITKEN 


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MEMOIRS^ 
^CAVALIER; 
or  A  Military^ 
Journal  gftfiel 
Wars  in  Germany 
and  tfie  Wars  In 

England  -^  By 
DANIEL  DEFOE 


LONDON  :  PUBLISHED 
by  J-M-DENT-  5-CO 
AND  IN  NEW  YORK 
BY  E-P-DUTTON  &CO 


lil 


College 
Library 

PR 


INTRODUCTION. 


THE  "Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  "  were  published  on 
the  2 1st  of  May  1720,  three  weeks  only  after  the 
appearance  of  "  Duncan  Campbell."  The  full 
title  of  the  original  edition,  which  bore  no  date,  was, 
"  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  ;  or,  a  Military  Journal  of  the 
Wars  in  Germany,  and  the  Wars  in  England.  From 
the  Year  1632  to  the  Year  1648.  Written  threescore 
years  ago,  by  an  English  Gentleman,  who  served  first 
in  the  Army  of  Gustavus  Adolphus,  the  glorious  King 
of  Sweden,  till  his  death,  and  after  that  in  the  Royal 
Army  of  King  Charles  the  First,  from  the  beginning  of 
the  Rebellion  to  the  end  of  the  War."  The  book  must 
have  been  ready  for  the  press  when  "  Duncan  Camp- 
bell "  appeared,  at  the  latest ;  it  purports  to  have  been 
written  "threescore  years  ago" — that  is,  not  later  than 
the  Restoration.  Elsewhere  the  date  is  carried  back 
to  1651,  or  earlier.  The  first  question,  then,  that  has 
to  be  considered  is  whether  Defoe's  work  is  in  reality 
based  upon  a  contemporary  manuscript  narrative ;  and 
this  question  leads  to  the  other  great  problem  connected 
with  the  book,  viz.,  Who  was  the  cavalier  whose  adven- 
tures are  here  described  ? 

It  will  be  convenient,  for  facility  of  reference,  to  give 
a  brief  summary  of  the  main  incidents  of  the  Cavalier's 


1441794 


viii  Introduction 

life  as  set  forth  in  the  Memoirs.  It  will  then  be  easy 
to  judge  of  the  plausibility  of  any  theory  which  may  be 
put  forth. 

"  It  may  suffice  the  reader,"  says  the  Cavalier, 
"  without  being  very  inquisitive  after  my  name,  that 
I  was  born  in  the  county  of  Salop,  in  the  year  ^608." 
His  father,  a  gentleman  of  means,  lived  six  miies  from 
"  the  town."  Being  a  second  son,  the  Cavalier  was  care- 
fully taught,  and  was  sent  to  " College,"  Oxford, 

when  he  was  seventeen.  At  the  end  of  three  years 
he  returned  home,  but,  as  he  evinced  a  great  desire  to 
travel,  his  father  gave  his  permission,  and  he  set  out 
for  the  Continent  with  a  friend  on  April  22,  1630. 
After  seeing  something  of  France  and  Italy,  the  young 
man  attached  himself  to  the  French  army  under  the 
Due  de  Montmorency  in  Italy,  and  was  present  at 
the  capture  of  Saluzzo.  From  September  1630  to 
January  1631  he  was  at  Milan,  and  in  April  1631 
he  reached  Vienna,  where  every  one  was  discussing 
the  war  in  Germany,  and  the  action  of  the  King  of 
Sweden.  The  Cavalier  abandoned  his  former  plans, 
and  decided  to  see  the  army  of  Gustavus  Adolphus ; 
but,  owing  to  difficuties  in  passing  the  guards  on  the 
frontiers  of  Silesia,  he  had  to  go  through  Saxony,  and 
at  the  beginning  of  May  1631  he  was  with  the 
Imperial  forces,  under  Count  Tilly,  at  the  siege  of 
Magdeburg.  Horrified  at  the  cruelties  which  fol- 
lowed the  fall  of  that  city,  the  Cavalier  left  the  Im- 
perial army  for  Leipsic,  where  he  remained  until 
August,  when  a  siege  seemed  imminent.  In  September 
he  reached  the  Swedish  army,  was  introduced  to  the 
king,  and  entered  himself  as  a  volunteer  under  Sir  John 
Hepburn.  Immediately  afterwards  the  Cavalier  took 
part  in  the  battle  of  Leipsic  (September  7,  1631), 
where  Tilly  was  defeated  ;  and  at  the  end  of  the  month 
he  was  wounded  in  the  arm  at  the  attack  on  the  castle 


Introduction  ix 

of  Marienburg.  Afterwards  he  took  an  active  part  in 
the  capture  of  the  fort  at  Oppenheim,  and  was  made 
Colonel  at  Mentz  in  February  1632.  In  April  he 
was  engaged  at  the  battle  of  the  Lech,  where  Tilly  was 
slain  ;  and  in  June  he  went  to  Nuremberg,  which  was 
then  being  besieged  by  Wallenstein.  He  was  present 
when  Freynstat  was  taken,  but  was  not  engaged  in  the 
battle  of  Altemberg.  Before  Leipsic  was  captured  by 
the  Imperialists,  the  Cavalier  had  been  taken  prisoner, 
and  he  thus  missed  the  battle  of  Liitzen  (November 

16,  1632),  where  his  hero  Gustavus  Adolphus  was 
killed.      When  Leipsic  was  retaken,  he  obtained  his 
liberty.     Afterwards  he  travelled  about  Germany  for 
two  years,  was  present  at  councils  of  war  in  1634,  and 
at  the  defeat  of  the  Protestants  at  Nordlingen  (August 

17,  1634).     By  March  1635  he  had  inspected  Prince 
Maurice's   army,   and  reached   the    Hague ;   and   he 
arrived  in  England  at  the  end  of  the  year. 

After  a  period  of  retirement  at  home,  the  Cavalier 
took  advantage  of  the  troubles  with  Scotland  in  1639 
to  serve  the  king  with  a  troop  of  horse.  In  the 
following  year  he  was  again  in  the  North,  and  when 
King  Charles's  forces  had  been  defeated  at  Newburn, 
he  was  sent  as  a  messenger  to  negotiate  a  treaty.  The 
Civil  War  broke  out  in  1642,  and  the  Cavalier  served 
in  his  father's  regiment  at  an  action  with  the  rebels 
under  Essex  in  October.  A  few  days  later  he  was 
at  the  battle  of  Edgehill  (fought  on  Sunday,  October 
23rd,  not  24th,  as  Defoe  says),  and  he  was  with  the 
king  when  the  Royalist  advance  on  London  was 
stopped  at  Brentford.  In  February  1643  t^ie  Cava- 
lier was  wounded  at  the  capture  of  Cirencester  by  the 
Royalists,  and  in  July  he  contributed  to  the  defeat 
of  Sir  William  Waller  at  Roundway  Down  by  taking 
a  body  of  horse  and  dragoons  to  the  aid  of  Sir  Wil- 
liam Hopton.  Then  came  the  siege  of  Gloucester, 


x  Introduction 

and  a  repulse  by  Essex  at  Cirencester.  The  Cavalier 
reached  the  king's  army  too  late  to  take  part  in  the 
battle  of  Newbury  (September  20).  In  May  and 
June  1644,  he  was  with  Prince  Rupert  at  Bolton, 
Liverpool,  Lathom  House,  Newcastle,  and  York ; 
and  he  had  a  narrow  escape  at  Marston  Moor  on 
July  2.  After  various  adventures  in  disguise,*  he 
rejoined  Prince  Rupert  at  Appleby,  and  then  went 
home  to  recruit  his  regiment.  Rejoining  the  king 
at  Oxford,  the  Cavalier  was  present  at  the  second 
battle  of  Newbury  (  October  27,1 644  ) .  On  his  way  to 
relieve  Newark  and  Pontefract,  he  had  an  engagement 
with  Colonel  Rossiter  at  Melton  Mowbray  ;  and  after- 
wards he  obtained  the  liberty  of  his  father,  who  had 
been  taken  prisoner  at  Shrewsbury.  The  composition 
for  his  estate  cost  ^"4000,  and  this,  with  other  expenses 
of  the  war,  and  3820,000  lent  to  the  king,  reduced  the 
family  to  very  poor  circumstances.  The  Cavalier  was 
at  the  capture  of  Hawkesley  House,  the  siege  of 
Leicester,  and  the  fatal  battle  of  Naseby  (June  14, 
1645).  The  CTents  tnat  followed  need  not  be  specially 
recorded  ;  the  Cavalier  was  ashamed  of  having  missed 
the  engagement  at  Rowton  Heath  (September  23)  by 
paying  a  visit  to  his  father.  Then  came  the  vain 
attempt  to  relieve  Hopton  in  Cornwall,  the  disbanding 
of  the  troops,  and  the  return  home  on  parole  in  March 
1 646.  The  remainder  of  the  book  consists  of  a  sketch 
of  the  king's  fate,  and  a  criticism  of  the  errors  of  the 
king's  advisers.  The  narrative  ends  with  an  allusion  to 
the  Restoration. 

Such,  in  brief,  is  the  Cavalier's  "Military  Journal." 
In  the  Preface,  Defoe  said  that  these  Memoirs  had  been 
in  the  publishers'  hands  for  above  twenty  years,  and 

*  The  Cavalier's  route  was  by  Blackstone  Edge,  which  is  fully 
described  in  Defoe's  "Tour  through  the  whole  Island  of  Great 
Britain." 


Introduction  xi 

that  they  had  been  discovered  by  accident  in  the  closet 
of  one  of  King  William's  Secretaries  of  State.  They 
received  sufficient  sanction  from  all  the  histories  of  the 
times.  The  name  of  the  Cavalier  could  not  be  dis- 
covered, but  there  was  a  memorandum  with  the  papers, 
signed  "  I.  K.,"  stating  that  the  manuscript  was 
obtained  by  the  writer's  father,  as  plunder,  at  or  after 
the  battle  of  Worcester  (1651).  The  style  was  so 
soldierly  "that  it  seems  impossible  anything  but  the 
very  person  who  was  present  in  every  action  here 
related  could  be  the  relater  of  them."  If  the  well- 
known  facts  of  the  Wars  are  here  embellished  with 
particulars  nowhere  else  to  be  found,  "that  is  the 
beauty  we  boast  of."  Finally,  it  was  hinted  that 
perhaps  there  was  a  continuation  of  the  narrative,  yet 
unpublished,  which  might  now  come  to  light. 

The  second  edition  of  the  "  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  " 
was  published  at  Leeds  without  date,  but  between  1740 
and  1750,  long  after  Defoe's  death.  In  the  Preface 
to  this  edition  the  question  "  Who  wrote  them  ? "  is 
discussed.  The  suggestion  that  the  whole  was  a 
romance  is  scouted,  and  the  editor  says  that  the  descrip- 
tion given  by  the  Cavalier  of  his  family  "  suits  no  one 
so  well  as  Andrew  Newport,  Esq.,  second  son  to 
Richard  Newport,  of  High  Ercall,  Esq.;  which  Richard 
was  created  Lord  Newport,  October  14,  1642."  This 
suggestion  has  been  widely  accepted,  and  in  some 
later  editions  the  work  is  called  "  Memoirs  of  Colonel 
Andrew  Newport." 

The  question  whether  the  "  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  " 
is  or  is  not  largely  a  work  of  fiction  depends  to  a  great 
extent  upon  the  question  whether  Andrew  Newport 
was  the  Cavalier ;  for  no  one  else  has  been  suggested 
as  the  original  of  the  officer  who  was  so  constantly 
taken  into  counsel  by  both  Gustavus  Adolphus  and 
Charles  I.,  and  by  their  lieutenants,  and  who  occupied 


xii  Introduction 

so  prominent  a  part  in  both  wars.  How  then  do  the 
known  facts  of  Andrew  Newport's  life  agree  with  what 
we  are  told  of  the  Cavalier  ? 

If  Defoe's  biographers  had  been  aware  that  Andrew 
Newport  was  not  born  until  1623,  they  would  have  seen 
that  Newport's  identification  with  the  Cavalier  was  im- 
possible. He  was  only  eight  at  the  date  of  the  siege 
of  Magdeburg,  and  only  nineteen  at  the  battle  of  Edge- 
hill.  This  fact  renders  further  inquiry  into  Newport's 
life  unnecessary  ;  but,  if  any  doubt  remained,  the  little 
that  we  know  about  him  makes  it  perfectly  clear 
that  he  was  not  the  prototype  of  the  Cavalier.  Mr 
C.  H.  Firth  shows,  in  the  "  Dictionary  of  National 
Biography,"  that  Newport  matriculated  at  Christ 
Church,  Oxford,  in  1640;  that  his  father  (the  first 
Lord  Newport)  and  his  elder  brother  (the  first  Earl 
of  Bradford)  were  active  Loyalists;  that  High  Ercall 
was  one  of  the  garrisons  which  held  out  longest  for  the 
king  in  Shropshire ;  but  that  there  is  no  evidence  that 
Andrew  Newport  took  part  in  the  Civil  War.  His 
father  was  made  a  peer  on  giving  the  king  ^6000 ; 
was  in  custody  in  1643  and  1645,  and  died  in  exile 
in  France  in  1651.  His  estate,  like  that  of  the  Cava- 
lier's father,  was  ruined  by  the  troubles  of  the  times. 
Andrew's  elder  brother,  Francis,  joined  the  king  at 
Oxford  in  January  1644,  and  was  taken  prisoner  at 
Oswestry  in  July.  In  1648  he  obtained  his  liberty 
by  compounding  for  his  delinquency,  and,  as  Lord 
Newport,  was  involved  in  Royalist  plots  during  the 
Commonwealth.  After  the  Restoration  he  received 
several  offices,  and  was  made  Ear]  of  Bradford  by 
William  III.  Andrew  Newport's  own  services  to 
the  Royalist  party  are  first  heard  of  in  1657.  Charles 
II.  spoke  highly  of  him  in  1659,  and  at  the  Restora- 
tion he  became  a  Commissioner  of  Customs.  He  was 
frequently  in  Parliament,  and  he  died  in  1699,  when 


Introduction  xiii 

he  was  buried  at  Wroxeter.  Luttrell  says  that  at  his 
death  he  was  worth  ^40,000,  besides  his  estate.  It 
will  be  seen  that  there  is  singularly  little  in  common 
between  Andrew  Newport  and  the  Cavalier. 

One  of  the  particulars  given  by  Defoe  "as  an 
evidence  that  it  is  very  probable  those  memorials  were 
written  many  years  ago  " — the  fact  that  the  manuscript 
was  discovered  in  1651 — is  contradicted  by  the  allu- 
sions at  the  end  to  the  Restoration,  which  purport 
to  be  made  by  the  Cavalier  himself.  Other  anach- 
ronisms have  been  pointed  out :  there  is  a  reference 
to  Ludlow's  "  Memoirs,"  which  were  not  published 
until  1698,  and  there  are  allusions  to  books  of 
Defoe's  own  time — "  Jure  Divino,"  and  the  "  Obser- 
vator."  A  reference  to  Charles  XII.,  Gustavus  Adol- 
phus's  "late  glorious  successor,"  shows  that  the 
Preface  at  least  was  written  after  1718.  These 
difficulties  are  not,  however,  fatal,  for  believers  in  the 
existence  of  an  old  manuscript  which  formed  the 
basis  of  Defoe's  book  will  reply,  of  course,  that  no  doubt 
Defoe  edited  his  original,  and  perhaps  altered  it  to  a 
considerable  extent.  It  is  certainly  the  case  that  some 
parts  of  the  "  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier "  contain  few 
of  his  usual  mannerisms,  but  this  can  be  accounted  for 
to  some  degree  by  the  nature  of  the  subject,  and  by 
the  paucity  of  dialogue.  As  it  is,  we  often  find  the 
familiar  "says  he,"  "as  I  have  said,"  "however," 
"in  short,"  and,  "to  fright"  (pp.  41,  184),  and 
"frighted"  (pp.  104,  166,  273).  The  constant  recur- 
rence of  "  I  confess"  and  "I  must  confess"  (pp.  4, 
114,  115,  134,  140,  143,  153,  &c.)  is  an  indication 
of  hasty  composition.  The  "  like  true  Germans,  they 
were  more  willing  to  be  saved  than  to  save  them- 
selves"  (p.  35)  is,  as  Mr  Doble  has  pointed  out, 
a  commonplace  of  Defoe.  The  use  of  the  word 
"  mob"  as  substantive  and  verb  (pp.  1 5,  1 54,  301 )  is  an 


xiv  Introduction 

illustration  of  the  fact  that  the  whole  style  of  the 
book  is  that  of  the  eighteenth  century  ;  while  not  un- 
frequently  we  come  upon  a  passage  which  could  have 
been  written  only  by  Defoe ;  as,  for  example,  the 
amusing  account  of  the  booty  obtained  by  the  Cavalier's 
servant  after  the  battle  of  Leipsic  (pp.  67-71),  and 
the  conversation  between  the  master  and  man. 

The  conflict  of  Defoe's  own  views  with  the  Cavalier's 
strong  Stuart  bias  and  dislike  of  the  Scotch  has  been 
noticed,  but  the  writer  of  a  novel  in  autobiographical  form 
clearly  cannot  be  held  responsible  for  the  opinions  of  the 
person  whose  history  he  tells.  Again,  Lee  says  that 
the  *'  Memoirs  "  show  little  of"  the  moral  and  religious 
spirit  of  dependence  upon  Providence  ...  so  charac- 
teristic of  Defoe  ; "  but  he  appears  to  have  overlooked 
the  "  minutes  of  circumstances  ...  as  to  the  fatality 
and  resolutions  of  days  and  times"  in  the  closing  pages, 
where  Defoe  speaks  of  Divine  providences  in  a  manner 
very  similar  to  that  of  "  Robinson  Crusoe  "  (vol.  i.  p. 
147)  and  the  "Serious  Reflections"  (vol.  iii.  p.  190). 
The  remarks  upon  the  eagerness  to  fight  on  both  sides 
during  the  Civil  War  (p.  163)  resemble  closely  what 
Defoe  had  said  many  years  before  on  the  same  subject 
in  the  "Essay  on  Projects"  (Of  Academies).  So, 
too,  a  parallel  for  the  remarks  upon  Gustavus  Adolphus's 
plan  of  interlining  musketeers  with  horse  (pp.  139, 
219),  and  upon  the  influence  of  the  clergy  in  1639 
(p.  135)}  will  be  found,  as  Mr  Doble  observes,  in 
"Memoirs  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,"  1717,  p.  189. 

If  we  continue  the  study  of  the  details  of  the  narrative 
we  shall  find  various  mistakes  which  could  hardly  have 
been  made  by  a  man  who  had  himself  gone  through  the 
experiences  described.  In  one  place  (as  Lee  pointed 
out)  the  Cavalier  says  he  never  designed  to  write  a 
book,  and  kept  no  journal ;  while  in  another  he  speaks 
of  his  "  Memoirs  of  Italy."  After  his  residence  in  Italy 


Introduction  xv 

he  says  he  "had  no  gust  for  antiquities ; "  but  afterwards, 
at  Munich,  he  regrets  that  he  could  not  take  "a  very 
exact  account"  of  the  duke's  chamber  of  rarities. 
More  important,  however,  than  these  inconsistencies  are 
numerous  errors  in  the  account  of  the  Civil  War,  many 
of  which  have  been  kindly  pointed  out  to  me  by  Mr 
Firth.  Thus  the  account  of  the  battle  of  Marston 
Moor — in  which  the  Cavalier  took  an  active  part — is 
entirely  at  variance  with  all  the  authorities.  The 
description  of  the  distribution  of  the  commands  in  the 
Royalist  army  is  wrong  in  nearly  every  point.  New- 
castle had  no  command  ;  Prince  Rupert  commanded  the 
right  and  not  the  left  wing,  and  was  beaten  altogether 
out  of  the  field  at  once ;  Goring  commanded  the 
victorious  left  wing  and  not  the  main  battle.  The 
contest  is  apparently  made  to  begin  in  the  early  morning, 
instead  of  at  five  or  six  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The 
re-capture  of  Newcastle  by  Rupert  (p.  217)  is  entirely 
fictitious  ;  and  the  Scotch  besieged  that  city  for  about 
nine  months  before  it  fell,  instead  of  for  twelve  days. 
Mr  Gardiner  says  that  it  is  certain  that  Rupert  did 
not  enter  York  when  the  siege  was  raised  before  the 
battle  of  Marston  Moor.  Defoe's  statement  to  the 
contrary  is  based  upon  Whitelocke,  whose  very  words 
("fetching  a  great  compass  about")  are  copied. 

Lord  Newport  was  not  among  those  taken  prisoner 
at  Shrewsbury  in  February  1645.  The  Governor  of 
Leicester  cannot  have  supplied  Sir  Marmaduke  Lang- 
dale  in  this  same  month  with  provisions  for  the  relief 
of  Newark,  because  Leicester  was  at  that  time  a  Par- 
liamentary garrison.  The  Cavalier  himself  describes  its 
capture  by  the  king  on  May  31,  1645.  Charles  left 
Oxford  for  Worcester  on  the  7th  of  May,  not  after 
the  fall  of  Leicester,  in  June.  Hawkesley  House  was 
taken  by  Prince  Rupert  in  sight  of  the  king,  not  by 
a  small  detached  force.  It  was  not  "  the  Cavalier," 

b 


xvi  Introduction 

but  Prince  Maurice  and  Lord  Wilmot,  or,  according 
to  others,  Sir  John  Byron,  whom  the  king  sent  to  the 
aid  of  the  Royalists,  before  the  engagement  at  Round- 
way  Down. 

The  omissions  on  the  part  of  the  Cavalier  are  as 
remarkable  as  his  mistakes.  He  does  not  allude  to  the 
capture  of  Francis  Newport  at  Oswestry  in  July  1644, 
nor  the  siege  of  Lord  Newport's  home,  High  Ercall, 
in  March  1 646  ;  and  he  gives  no  Shropshire  news.  He 
rarely  mentions  the  names  of  persons  of  small  import- 
ance, nor  does  he  give  details  of  the  places  and  dates  of 
the  lesser  events  which  he  describes  so  circumstantially. 
He  never  mentions — as  we  should  expect  him  to  do — 
any  of  his  friends  or  neighbours;  in  fact,  he  confines  him- 
self entirely  to  the  names  of  well-known  commanders. 

An  examination  of  the  whole  narrative  leads  to  the 
conclusion  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  story  of  the  Civil 
War  which  Defoe  could  not  have  obtained  by  a  perusal 
of  Clarendon,  Rushworth,  Whitelocke,  and  Ludlow. 
Whitelocke  and  Ludlow,  at  least,  were  in  his  own 
library,  as  well  as  the  histories  by  Rapin  and  EC  hard, 
and  we  know  that  Defoe  possessed  a  large  collection  of 
Civil  War  pamphlets  which  would  enable  him  to'supple- 
ment  what  he  found  in  the  other  works.  The  ac- 
count of  the  Thirty  Years'  War  seems  to  be  based  in 
a  similar  manner  upon  the  "  Swedish  Intelligencer  "  * 
(1632-34),  and  in  a  less  degree  upon  the  "Swedish 
Soldier"  (1634),  and  Colonel  Robert  Monro's 
"  Expedition  with  the  worthy  Scots  regiment  called 

*  The  friend  who  served  with  the  Cavalier  under  Gustavus 
Adolphus  (Captain  Fielding)  was  a  real  person.  Defoe  says  he 
was  wounded  and  taken  prisoner  at  Altemberg  (p.  113) ;  and 
the  compiler  of  the  "Swedish  Intelligencer"  has  a  marginal 
note  (Part  III.,  p.  32) :  "All  this  relation  .  .  .  received  I  from 
.  .  .  Captain  Fielding  [&c.]  .  .  .  then  present  in  the  action." 
This  was  presumably  the  Colonel  Fielding  who  was  afterwards 
tried  by  court-martial  for  surrendering  Reading  to  the  Parlia- 
mentary forces  (p.  192). 


Introduction  xvii 

Mackeye's"  (1637).  The  writer  himself  speaks 
of  the  "  histories  of  those  times,  which  I  have  since 
read  with  a  great  deal  of  delight."  These  books 
Defoe  seems  to  have  studied  with  care,  but  without 
troubling  to  refer  to  them  when  he  was  writing,  to 
ensure  perfect  accuracy  ;  and  with  the  narrative  with 
which  he  had  thus  filled  his  mind  he  interwove  an 
imaginary  account  of  a  Cavalier,  in  order  to  give  unity 
to  the  whole.  The  reader  will  notice  that  the  Cavalier 
is  studiously  vague  in  the  particulars  of  his  place  of 
birth,  his  family,  his  college  at  Oxford,  and  the  like. 

Defoe  was  wont  to  say  that  his  books  were  based  upon 
old  manuscripts.  He  loved,  he  tells  us,  to  search 
among  ancient  records  ;  and  in  some  cases  he  certainly 
had  before  him — contrary  to  the  general  opinion — the 
manuscript  or  foreign  book  to  which  he  alludes.  Lee 
has  pointed  out  that  in  his  "  Scots  Nation  and  Union 
Vindicated,"  a  pamphlet  published  in  1714,  six  years 
before  the  "  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier,"  Defoe  expressly 
alludes  to  a  manuscript  relating  to  Gustavus  Adolphus  : 
"  The  manuscript  I  have  had  in  my  hands  many  years." 
I  am,  then,  not  prepared  to  say  positively  that  Defoe 
made  use  of  no  manuscript  records  in  writing  the 
"  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier ;  "  but  if  he  had  any  such 
personal  account  he  must — other  difficulties  apart — have 
been  very  careless  in  his  perusal  of  it.  It  should  not 
be  forgotten  that  when  Defoe  was  thirty  or  forty,  many 
who  had  served  in  these  wars  were  living.  No  doubt  he 
often  discussed  the  campaigns  with  these  men,  who  would 
supply  him  with  some  of  the  military  knowledge  which 
he  shows ;  and  perhaps  the  exaggerations  and  errors 
which  so  easily  creep  into  a  tale  that  is  often  told  will 
help  to  account  for  the  mistakes  in  the  "  Memoirs." 

I  regret  that  I  have  had  to  dwell  so  long  upon  a 
matter  of  controversy,  and  some  readers  will  sympathise 
with  the  writer  (probably  Scott)  of  the  Advertisement 


xviii  Introduction 

to  the  1809-10  edition  of  Defoe,  who  deftly  avoided 
the  problem  whether  the  "  Memoirs "  were  romance 
or  authentic  history  by  saying  that,  in  any  case,  they  were 
"of  the  best  description  of  either  species  of  compo- 
sition. .  .  .  There  is  so  much  simplicity  and  ap- 
parent fidelity  of  statement  throughout  the  narrative, 
that  the  feelings  are  little  indebted  to  those  who  would 
remove  the  veil ;  and  the  former  editors,  perhaps,  have 
acted  not  unwisely  in  leaving  the  circumstances  of  its 
authenticity  in  their  original  obscurity."  It  would, 
however,  have  been  inexcusable  at  the  present  day  not 
to  give  as  clear  an  account  as  possible  of  the  chief 
problem  connected  with  the  book.  Having  done  this, 
we  may  turn  with  relief  to  the  consideration  of  the 
narrative  as  a  work  of  art. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  Earl  of  Chatham  believed 
the  "  Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier  "  to  be  genuine  history, 
and  said  they  gave  the  best  account  of  the  Civil  War 
which  was  extant.  Opinions  as  to  the  duties  of  a 
serious  historian  have  altered  much  since  then ;  his- 
torical romances,  if  good  of  their  kind,  will  always 
be  welcome,  and  will  serve  other  useful  ends  besides 
amusement ;  but  nowadays  we  expect  a  writer  to  make 
it  clear  whether  his  work  is  fact  or  fiction.  Defoe 
felt  perfectly  warranted  in  giving  greater  point  and 
interest  to  his  narrative  by  the  interposition  of  an 
imaginary  Cavalier  who  could  describe  the  events  of 
the  time  as  his  own  experiences.  He  thought  it  was 
much  more  important  that  his  readers  should  have 
before  them  a  striking  picture  of  the  chief  events  of 
a  war  than  that  the  story  should  be  of  impeccable 
accuracy,  but  dull.  There  is  certainly  a  place  in  the 
historical  library  for  such  work  as  Defoe's,  and  the 
"Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier"  is,  from  the  historical  point 
of  view,  one  of  the  very  best  books  of  its  class  in 
existence. 


Introduction  xix 

It  has  been  argued  that  it  would  have  been  beyond 
even  Defoe's  genius  to  give  us  the  realistic  descriptions 
of  military  events  which  abound  in  the  "  Memoirs  of  a 
Cavalier,"  if  the  book  were  not  based  upon  some 
personal  narrative.  But  the  author  of  "  Robinson 
Crusoe"  and  the  "Journal  of  the  Plague  Year"  was 
quite  able  to  master  military  tactics,  and  when  he  had 
made  a  subject  his  own — whether  it  was  a  life  of  crime 
or  a  pirate's  career,  a  tradesman's  methods  of  success  or 
a  fortune-teller's — he  was  always  able  to  write  as  if 
the  matter  had  been  his  lifelong  study.  And  there  is 
abundant  evidence  that  Defoe's  interest  in  history  and 
military  memoirs  dated  from  his  earliest  years  as  an 
author. 

Wherever  the  knowledge  came  from,  the  skill 
shown  in  the  descriptions  in  the  "  Memoirs  of  a 
Cavalier  "  is  certainly  striking.  The  battle  of  Leipsic, 
the  crossing  of  the  Lech,  the  siege  of  Augsburg,  the 
operations  near  Nuremberg,  the  battles  of  Edgehill, 
Marston  Moor,  Naseby  —  these  and  many  other 
engagements  are  explained  with  all  the  clearness  and 
detail  which  might  be  expected  in  the  narrative  of  an 
intelligent  eye-witness.  And  some  of  the  characters 
drawn  for  us  are  as  interesting  as  the  campaigns,  notably 
that  of  Gustavus  Adolphus,  whom  the  Cavalier  never 
fails  to  praise.  We  find,  too,  notices  of  Tilly,  of 
Charles  I.,  of  Prince  Rupert,  and  high  praise  of  Lord 
Fairfax,  "the  fittest  to  be  reckoned  in  the  second  place 
of  honour "  to  the  Swedish  king.  The  Cavalier 
criticises  admirably,  as  an  old  soldier  who  had  served 
under  a  great  commander,  the  defects  of  the  untrained 
recruits  who  took  part  in  the  Civil  Wars,  and  the 
mistakes  made  by  their  officers ;  and  he  has  much  to 
say  about  the  errors  in  policy  which  brought  disaster  to 
the  Royalist  cause. 

It  is  by  these  remarks  that  we  learn  most  that  we 


xx  Introduction 

know  of  the  Cavalier  himself;  but  the  fact  is  that  from 
beginning  to  end  we  gather  comparatively  little  about 
his  character,  beyond  his  love  of  action  and  his  bravery. 
He  remains  a  somewhat  shadowy  person,  known  to  us 
chiefly  through  his  deeds ;  but  he  was  held  in  high 
esteem  by  those  under  whom  he  served,  and  his  advice 
was  often  sought  in  military  and  other  matters.  Defoe 
added  greatly  to  the  air  of  verisimilitude  by  causing  the 
Cavalier  to  be  taken  prisoner  before  the  great  battle  of 
Liitzen,  an  engagement  which  many  would  have  made 
one  of  the  central  points  of  the  story.  In  a  similar 
manner  the  Cavalier,  owing  to  a  regrettable  delay  of 
two  days  at  Bath,  where  he  met  some  relatives, 
reached  Charles's  army,  after  a  skirmish  with  Essex, 
too  late  to  take  part  in  the  first  battle  of  Newbury, 
and  he  missed  the  engagement  at  Rowton  Heath 
through  his  temporary  absence  from  the  army  on  a  visit 
to  his  father.  This,  he  says,  "  was  the  most  unsoldier- 
like  action  that  ever  I  was  guilty  of ;  "  but  we  feel  too 
well  convinced  of  his  bravery  to  need  his  assurance  that 
he  had  not  the  least  reason  to  think  that  the  army  would 
engage  during  the  time  that  he  would  be  absent. 

If  any  one  wishes  to  compare  the  methods  of  novelists  of 
different  schools,  old  and  new,  he  cannot  do  better  than 
read  the  matter-of-fact  narrative  of  Defoe's  "  Memoirs 
of  a  Cavalier,"  whose  very  name  is  withheld  from  us, 
and  then  turn  to  Mr  Stanley  Weyman's  fascinating 
romance  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  in  which  everything 
centres  around  the  heroine,  Lady  Rotha,  after  whom 
the  book  is  named.  An  interesting  and  instructive 
subject  for  study  is  afforded  by  the  contrast  between 
the  modern  author's  graphic  account  of  the  anxiety 
among  the  inhabitants  of  Nuremberg  during  the  siege, 
and  Defoe's  brief  statement  of  the  careful  arrangements 
made  by  the  authorities,  and  of  the  excellent  order 
maintained  in  the  city. 


THE  following  is  a  list  of  Defoe's  works :  " 
Discovery  of  Old  Intrigue"  (verse),  1691.  "Char- 
acter of  Dr.  Samuel  Annesley "  (verse),  1697.  "The 
Pacificator"  (verse),  1700.  "True- Born  Englishman" 
(verse),  1701.  "The  Mock  Mourners"  (verse),  1702. 
"Reformation  of  Manners"  (verse),  1702.  "New 
Test  of  Church  of  England's  Loyalty,"  1 702.  "  Shortest 
Way  with  the  Dissenters,"  1702.  "Ode  to  the 
Athenian  Society,"  1703.  "Enquiry  into  Acgill's 
General  Translation,"  1703.  "More  Reformation" 
(verse),  1703.  "Hymn  to  the  Pillory,"  1703.  "The 
Storm "  (Tale),  1 704.  "  Layman's  Sermon  on  the 
Late  Storm,"  1704.  "The  Consolid'ator ;  or,  Me- 
moirs of  Sundry  Transactions  from  the  World  in 
the  Moon,"  1704.  "Elegy  on  Author  of  'True-Born 
Englishman,'"  1704.  "Hymn  to  Victory,"  1704. 
"Giving  Alms  no  Charity,"  1704.  "The  Dyet  of 
Poland"  (verse),  1705.  "Apparition  of  Mrs.  Veal," 
1706.  "Sermon  on  the  Filling-up  of  Dr.  Burgess's 
Meeting-house,"  1706.  "Jure  Divino"  (verse),  1706. 
"Caledonia"  (verse),  1706.  "History  of  the  Union 
of  Great  Britain,"  1709.  "Short  Enquiry  into  a  Late 
Duel,"  1713.  "A  General  History  of  Trade,"  1713. 
"Wars  of  Charles  III.,"  1715.  "The  Family  In- 
struction" (two  eds.),  1715.  "Hymn  to  the  Mob," 
1715.  "Memoirs  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,"  1717. 
"Life  and  Death  of  Count  Patkul,"  1717.  "Memoirs 
of  Duke  of  Shrewsbury,"  1718.  "  Memoirs  of  Daniel 
Williams,"  1718.  "The  Life  and  Strange  Surprising 
Adventures  of  Robinson  Crusoe,  of  York,  Mariner," 
1719.  "  The  Farther  Adventures  of  Robinson  Crusoe," 

1719.  "The  Dumb  Philosopher:  or,  Great  Britain's 
Wonder,"    1719.      "The    King    of    Pirates"    (Capt. 
Avery),    1719.      "Life    of   Baron    de   Goertz,"   1719. 
"Life  and  Adventures  of  Duncan  Campbell,"  1720. 
"Mr.   Campbell's   Pacquet,"    1720.     "Memoirs   of  a 
Cavalier,"  1720.     "Life  of  Captain  Singleton,"  1720. 
"  Serious  Reflections  during  the  Life  and  Surprising 
Adventures  of  Robinson  Crusoe,"  1720.    "The  Super- 
natural Philosopher  ;  or,  The  Mysteries  of  Magick," 

1720.  Translation  of  DU  Fresnoy"s  "Compleat  Art 
of  Painting"  (verse),  1720.     "Moll  Flanders,"  1722. 

xxi 


"Journal  of  the  Plague  Year,"  1722.     "Due  Prepara- 
tions for  the  Plague,"    1722.     "Life   of  Cartouche," 

1722.  "  History  of  Colonel  Jacque,"  1722.    "Religious 
Courtship,"    1722.      "History   of    Peter  the   Great," 

1723.  "The    Highland   Rogue"    (Rob   Roy),    1723. 
"The  Fortunate  Mistress"  (Roxana),  1724.     "Nar- 
rative of  Murders  at  Calais,"   1724.     "  Life  of  John 
Sheppard,"  1724.     "Robberies,  Escapes,  &c.,  of  John 
Sheppard,"  1 724.     "  The  Great  Law  of  Subordination  ; 
or,  The   Insolence    and    Insufferable    Behaviour  of 
Servants  in  England,"  1724.     "A  Tour  through  Great 
Britain,"  1724-6.     "  New  Voyage  Round  the  World/' 
1725.     "  Account  of  Jonathan  Wild,"  1725.     "Account 
of   John    Gow,"    1725.      "Everybody's  Business   is 
Nobody's    Business"    (on    Servants),    1725.      "The 
Complete  English  Tradesman,"  1725  ;  vol.  ii.,  1727. 
"The  Friendly  Demon,"  1726.     "Mere  Nature  De- 
lineated" (Peter  the  Wild    Boy),   1726.     "Political 
History  of  the  Devil,"  1726.     "  Essay  upon  Literature 
and  the  Original  of  Letters,"  1726.     "  History  of  Dis- 
coveries," 1726-7.  "  The  Protestant  Monastery,"  1726. 
"A  System  of  Magic,"  1726.    "  Parochial  Tyranny," 
1727.      "Treatise    concerning    Use    and    Abuse  of 
Marriage,"  1727."     "Secrets  of  Invisible  World  Dis- 
covered ;  or,  History  and   Reality  of  Apparitions," 

1727,  1728.      "A    New    Family    Instructor,"    1728. 
"  Augusta  Triumphans,"  1728.  "  Plan  of  English  Com- 
merce," 1728.    "  Second  Thoughts  are  Best "  (on  Street 
Robberies),   1728.     "  Street   Robberies   Considered," 

1728.  "Humble  Proposal  to  People  of  England  for 
Increase   of  Trade,    &c.,"    1729.      "Preface    to    R. 
Dodsley's    Poem     'Servitude,'"     1729.       "Effectual 
Scheme  for  Preventing  Street  Robberies,"  1731. 

Besides  the  above-named  publications  a  large 
number  of  further  tracts  by  Defoe  are  extant,  on 
matters  of  Politics  and  Church. 


PREFACE   TO   THE   FIRST 
EDITION. 


S  an  evidence  that  'tis  very  probable  these  Memo- 
r*a^8  were  written  many  years  ago,  the  persons 
now  concerned  in  the  publication  assure  the 
reader  that  they  have  had  them  in  their  possession 
finished,  as  they  now  appear,  above  twenty  years ;  that 
they  were  so  long  ago  found  by  great  accident,  among 
other  valuable  papers,  in  the  closet  of  an  eminent  public 
minister,  of  no  less  figure  than  one  of  King  William's 
secretaries  of  state. 

As  it  is  not  proper  to  trace  them  any  farther,  so 
neither  is  there  any  need  to  trace  them  at  all,  to  give 
reputation  to  the  story  related,  seeing  the  actions  here 
mentioned  have  a  sufficient  sanction  from  all  the  histories 
of  the  times  to  which  they  relate,  with  this  addition, 
that  the  admirable  manner  of  relating  them,  and  the 
wonderful  variety  of  incidents  with  which  they  are 
beautified  in  the  course  of  a  private  gentleman's  story, 
add  such  delight  in  the  reading,  and  give  such  a  lustre, 
as  well  to  the  accounts  themselves  as  to  the  person  who 
was  the  actor,  that  no  story,  we  believe,  extant  in  the 
world  ever  came  abroad  with  such  advantage. 

It  must  naturally  give  some  concern  in  the  reading 

that  the  name  of  a  person  of  so  much  gallantry  and 
xzfl 


xxiv    Preface  to  the  First  Edition 

honour,  and  so  many  ways  valuable  to  the  world,  should 
be  lost  to  the  readers.  We  assure  them  no  small  labour 
has  been  thrown  away  upon  the  inquiry,  and  all  we 
have  been  able  to  arrive  to  of  discovery  in  this  affair  is, 
that  a  memorandum  was  found  with  this  manuscript,  in 
these  words,  but  not  signed  by  any  name,  only  the  two 
letters  of  a  name,  which  gives  us  no  light  into  the  matter, 
which  memoir  was  as  follows  : — 

Memorandum. 

"I  found  this  manuscript  among  my  father's  writings, 
and  I  understand  that  he  got  them  as  plunder,  at,  or 
after,  the  fight  at  Worcester,  where  he  served  as  major 
pf *s  regiment  of  horse  on  the  side  of  the  Parlia- 
ment. I.  K." 

As  this  has  been  of  no  use  but  to  terminate  the 
inquiry  after  the  person,  so,  however,  it  seems  most 
naturally  to  give  an  authority  to  the  original  of  the 
work,  viz.,  that  it  was  born  of  a  soldier  ;  and  indeed  it 
is  through  every  part  related  with  so  soldierly  a  style, 
and  in  the  very  language  of  the  field,  that  it  seems 
impossible  anything  but  the  very  person  who  was 
present  in  every  action  here  related  could  be  the  relater 
of  them. 

The  accounts  of  battles,  the  sieges,  and  the  several 
actions  of  which  this  work  is  so  full,  are  all  recorded 
in  the  histories  of  those  times ;  such  as  the  great  battle 
of  Leipsic,  the  sacking  of  Magdeburg,  the  siege  of 
Nuremberg,  the  passing  the  river  Lech  in  Bavaria ; 
such  also  as  the  battle  of  Kineton,  or  Edgehill, 
the  battles  of  Newbury,  Marston  Moor,  and  Naseby, 
and  the  like :  they  are  all,  we  say,  recorded  in  other 
histories,  and  written  by  those  who  lived  in  those  times, 
and  perhaps  had  good  authority  for  what  they  wrote. 


Preface  to  the  First  Edition      xxv 

But  do  those  relations  give  any  of  the  beautiful  ideas 
of  things  formed  in  this  account  ?  Have  they  one  half 
of  the  circumstances  and  incidents  of  the  actions  them- 
selves that  this  man's  eyes  were  witness  to,  and  which 
his  memory  has  thus  preserved  ?  He  that  has  read 
the  best  accounts  of  those  battles  will  be  surprised  to 
see  the  particulars  of  the  story  so  preserved,  so  nicely 
and  so  agreeably  described,  and  will  confess  what  we 
allege,  that  the  story  is  inimitably  told  ;  and  even  the 
great  actions  of  the  glorious  King  GUSTAVUS  ADOLPHUS 
receive  a  lustre  from  this  man's  relations  which  the 
world  was  never  made  sensible  of  before,  and  which 
the  present  age  has  much  wanted  of  late,  in  order  to 
give  their  affections  a  turn  in  favour  of  his  late  glorious 
successor. 

In  the  story  of  our  own  country's  unnatural  wars,  he 
carries  on  the  same  spirit.  How  effectually  does  he 
record  the  virtues  and  glorious  actions  of  King  Charles 
the  First,  at  the  same  time  that  he  frequently  enters 
upon  the  mistakes  of  his  Majesty's  conduct,  and  of  his 
friends,  which  gave  his  enemies  all  those  fatal  advan- 
tages against  him,  which  ended  in  the  overthrow  of  his 
armies,  the  loss  of  his  crown  and  life,  and  the  ruin  of 
the  constitution ! 

In  all  his  accounts  he  does  justice  to  his  enemies, 
and  honours  the  merit  of  those  whose  cause  he  fought 
against ;  and  many  accounts  recorded  in  his  story,  are 
not  to  be  found  even  in  the  best  histories  of  those 
times. 

What  applause  does  he  give  to  the  gallantry  of  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax,  to  his  modesty,  to  his  conduct,  under 
which  he  himself  was  subdued,  and  to  the  justice  he 
did  the  king's  troops  when  they  laid  down  their  arms! 

His  description  of  the  Scots  troops  in  the  beginning 
of  the  war,  and  the  behaviour  of  the  party  under  the 
Earl  of  Holland,  who  went  over  against  them,  are 


xxvi     Preface  to  the  First  Edition 

admirable ;  and  his  censure  of  their  conduct,  who 
pushed  the  king  upon  the  quarrel,  and  then  would  not 
let  him  fight,  is  no  more  than  what  many  of  the  king's 
friends  (though  less  knowing  as  soldiers)  have  often 
complained  of. 

In  a  word,  this  work  is  a  confutation  of  many  errors 
in  all  the  writers  upon  the  subject  of  our  wars  in  Eng- 
land, and  even  in  that  extraordinary  history  written  by 
the  Earl  of  Clarendon ;  but  the  editors  were  so  just, 
that  when,  near  twenty  years  ago,  a  person  who  had 
written  a  whole  volume  in  folio,  by  way  of  answer  to 
and  confutation  of  Clarendon's  "  History  of  the  Rebel- 
lion," would  have  borrowed  the  clauses  in  this  account, 
which  clash  with  that  history,  and  confront  it, — we 
say  the  editors  were  so  just  as  to  refuse  them. 

There  can  be  nothing  objected  against  the  general 
credit  of  this  work,  seeing  its  truth  is  established  upon 
universal  history ;  and  almost  all  the  facts,  especially 
those  of  moment,  are  confirmed  for  their  general  part 
by  all  the  writers  of  those  times.  If  they  are  here 
embellished  with  particulars,  which  are  nowhere  else 
to  be  found,  that  is  the  beauty  we  boast  of;  and  that 
it  is  that  must  recommend  this  work  to  all  the  men  of 
sense  and  judgment  that  read  it. 

The  only  objection  we  find  possible  to  make  against 
this  work  is,  that  it  is  not  carried  on  farther,  or,  as  we 
may  say  finished,  with  the  finishing  the  war  of  the 
time  ;  and  this  we  complain  of  also.  But  then  we 
complain  of  it  as  a  misfortune  to  the  world,  not  as  a 
fault  in  the  author ;  for  how  do  we  know  but  that  this 
author  might  carry  it  on,  and  have  another  part  finished 
which  might  not  fall  into  the  same  hands,  or  may  still 
remain  with  some  of  his  family,  and  which  they  cannot 
indeed  publish,  to  make  it  seem  anything  perfect,  for 
want  of  the  other  parts  which  we  have,  and  which  we 
hare  now  made  public  ?  Nor  is  it  very  improbable  but 


Preface  to  the  First  Edition   xxvii 

that  if  any  such  farther  part  is  in  being,  the  publishing 
these  two  parts  may  occasion  the  proprietors  of  the 
third  to  let  the  world  see  it,  and  that  by  such  a  dis- 
covery the  name  of  the  person  may  also  come  to  be 
known,  which  would,  no  doubt,  be  a  great  satisfaction 
to  the  reader  as  well  as  us. 

This,  however,  must  be  said,  that  if  the  same  author 
should  have  written  another  part  of  this  work,  and 
carried  it  on  to  the  end  of  those  times,  yet  as  the 
residue  of  those  melancholy  days,  to  the  Restoration, 
were  filled  with  the  intrigues  of  government,  the  poli- 
tical management  of  illegal  power,  and  the  dissensions 
and  factions  of  a  people  who  were  then  even  in  them- 
selves but  a  faction,  and  that  there  was  very  little  action 
in  the  field,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  our  author, 
who  was  a  man  of  arms,  had  little  share  in  those  things, 
and  might  not  care  to  trouble  himself  with  looking  at 
them. 

But  besides  all  this,  it  might  happen  that  he  might 
go  abroad  again  at  that  time,  as  most  of  the  gentlemen 
of  quality,  and  who  had  an  abhorrence  for  the  power 
that  then  governed  here,  did.  Nor  are  we  certain  that 
he  might  live  to  the  end  of  that  time,  so  we  can  give 
no  account  whether  he  had  any  share  in  the  subsequent 
actions  of  that  time. 

'Tis  enough  that  we  have  the  authorities  above  to 
recommend  this  part  to  us  that  is  now  published.  The 
relation,  we  are  persuaded,  will  recommend  itself,  and 
nothing  more  can  be  needful,  because  nothing  more  can 
invite  than  the  story  itself,  which,  when  the  reader 
enters  into,  he  will  find  it  very  hard  to  get  out  of  till 
he  has  gone  through  it. 


THE   PUBLISHER   OF  THE   SECOND 
EDITION  TO  THE  READER. 


THE  following  historical  Memoirs  are  writ  with 
so  much  spirit  and  good  sense,  that  there  is  no 
doubt  of  their  pleasing  all  such  as  can  form  any 
just  pretensions  to  either.  However,  as  upon  reading 
of  a  book  'tis  a  question  that  naturally  occurs,  Who  is 
the  author  ?  and  as  it  is  too  much  the  custom  in  these 
days  to  form  our  sentiments  of  a  performance  not  from 
its  intrinsic  merit,  but  from  the  sentiments  we  form  of 
the  writer,  the  present  republication  of  these  Memoirs 
will  renew  an  inquiry  which  has  been  oft  made,  Who 
wrote  them  ?  Some  have  imagined  the  whole  to  be  a 
romance.  If  it  be,  'tis  a  romance  the  likest  to  truth 
that  I  ever  read.  It  has  all  the  features  of  truth,  'tis 
clothed  with  her  simplicity,  and  adorned  with  her 
charms.  Without  hazard,  I  may  venture  to  say,  were 
all  romance-writers  to  follow  this  author's  example, 
their  works  would  yield  entertainment  to  philosophers, 
as  well  as  serve  for  the  amusement  of  beaux-esprits.  But 
I  am  fully  persuaded  our  author,  whoever  he  was,  had 
been  early  concerned  in  the  actions  he  relates.  'Tis 
certain  no  man  could  have  given  a  description  of  his 
retreat  from  Marston  Moor  to  Rochdale,  and  from 
thence  over  the  moors  to  the  north,  in  so  apt  and  proper 


xxx        Preface  to  Second  Edition 

terms,  and  in  so  exact  a  manner,  unless  he  had  really 
travelled  over  the  very  ground  he  describes.  I  could 
point  out  many  other  instances  in  the  course  of  the 
Memoirs  which  evidence  that  the  author  must  have 
been  well  acquainted  with  the  towns,  battles,  sieges, 
&c.,  and  a  party  in  the  actions  he  relates.  But  as  'tis 
needless  to  do  this,  all  that  remains  is  to  trace  our 
author  to  his  name. 

He  says  he  was  second  son  to  a  Shropshire  gentle- 
man, who  was  made  a  peer  in  the  reign  of  King 
Charles  the  First,  whose  seat  lay  eight  miles  from 
Shrewsbury.  This  account  suits  no  one  so  well  as 
Andrew  Newport,  Esq.,  second  son  to  Richard  New- 
port, of  High  Ercall,  Esq.,  which  Richard  was  created 
Lord  Newport,  October  14,  1642.  This  Andrew 
Newport,  Esq.,  whom  we  suppose  our  author  to  be, 
was,  after  the  Restoration,  made  a  Commissioner  of  the 
Customs,  probably  in  reward  of  his  zeal  and  good  ser- 
vices for  the  royal  cause. 

The  several  illustrations  these  Memoirs  furnish  to 
the  history  of  those  times  they  refer  to,  the  variety  of 
adventures  they  contain,  and  the  elegant  account  herein 
given  of  the  wars  in  Germany  and  England,  will  abun- 
dantly recommend  them  to  the  curious. 


MEMOIRS  OF  A  CAVALIER 


PART  I. 

IT  may  suffice  the  reader,  without  being  very 
inquisitive  after  my  name,  that  I  was  born  in  the 
county  of  Salop,  in  the  year  1608,  under  the 
government  of  what  star  I  was  never  astrologer  enough 
to  examine ;  but  the  consequences  of  my  life  may 
allow  me  to  suppose  some  extraordinary  influence 
affected  my  birth.  If  there  be  anything  in  dreams 
also,  my  mother,  who  was  mighty  observant  that  way, 
took  minutes,  which  I  have  since  seen  in  the  first  leaf 
of  her  prayer-book,  of  several  strange  dreams  she  had 
while  she  was  with  child  of  her  second  son,  which  was 
myself.  Once  she  noted  that  she  dreamed  she  was 
carried  away  by  a  regiment  of  horse,  and  delivered  in 
the  fields  of  a  son,  that  as  soon  as  it  was  born  had  two 
wings  came  out  of  its  back,  and  in  half-an-hour's  time 
flew  away  from  her  :  and  the  very  evening  before  I 
was  born,  she  dreamed  she  was  brought  to  bed  of  a 
son,  and  that  all  the  while  she  was  in  labour  a  man 
stood  under  her  window  beating  on  a  kettle-drum, 
which  very  much  discomposed  her. 

My  father  was  a  gentleman  of  a  very  plentiful  for- 
tune,  having  an  estate  of  above  ^5000  per  annum, 

A 


2         Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

of  a  family  nearly  allied  to  several  of  the  principal 
nobility,    and   lived  about  six  miles  from  the  town ; 

and   my    mother    being    at  on    some   particular 

occasion,  was  surprised  there  at  a  friend's  house,  and 
brought  me  very  safe  into  the  world. 

I  was  my  father's  second  son,  and  therefore  was  not 
altogether  so  much  slighted  as  younger  sons  of  good 
families  generally  are.  But  my  father  saw  something 
in  my  genius  also  which  particularly  pleased  him,  and 
so  made  him  take  extraordinary  care  of  my  educa- 
tion. 

I  was  taught,  therefore,  by  the  best  masters  that  could 
be  had,  everything  that  was  needful  to  accomplish  a 
young  gentleman  for  the  world ;  and  at  seventeen 
years  old  my  tutor  told  my  father  an  academic  edu- 
cation was  very  proper  for  a  person  of  quality,  and  he 
thought  me  very  fit  for  it :  so  my  father  entered  me  of 

College   in    Oxford,    where  I  continued  three 

years. 

A  collegiate  life  did  not  suit  me  at  all,  though  I 
loved  books  well  enough.  It  was  never  designed 
that  I  should  be  either  a  lawyer,  physician,  or  divine ; 
and  I  wrote  to  my  father  that  I  thought  I  had  stayed 
there  long  enough  for  a  gentleman,  and  with  his  leave 
I  desired  to  give  him  a  visit. 

During  my  stay  at  Oxford,  though  I  passed  through 
the  proper  exercises  of  the  house,  yet  my  chief  read- 
ing was  upon  history  and  geography,  as  that  which 
pleased  my  mind  best,  and  supplied  me  with  ideas 
most  suitable  to  my  genius ;  by  one  I  understood 
what  great  actions  had  been  done  in  the  world,  and 
by  the  other  I  understood  where  they  had  been 
done. 

My  father  readily  complied  with  my  desire  of 
coming  home  ;  for  besides  that  he  thought,  as  I  did, 
that  three  years'  time  at  the  university  was  enough,  he 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier         3 

also  most  passionately  loved  me,  and  began  to  think  of 
my  settling  near  him. 

At  my  arrival  I  found  myself  extraordinarily 
caressed  by  my  father,  and  he  seemed  to  take  a 
particular  delight  in  my  conversation.  My  mother, 
who  lived  in  perfect  union  with  him  both  in  desires 
and  affection,  received  me  very  passionately.  Apart- 
ments were  provided  for  me  by  myself,  and  horses  and 
servants  allowed  me  in  particular. 

My  father  never  went  a-hunting,  an  exercise  he  was 
exceeding  fond  of,  but  he  would  have  me  with  him ; 
and  it  pleased  him  when  he  found  me  like  the  sport. 
I  lived  thus,  in  all  the  pleasures  'twas  possible  for  me 
to  enjoy,  for  about  a  year  more,  when  going  out  one 
morning  with  my  father  to  hunt  a  stag,  and  having  had 
a  very  hard  chase,  and  gotten  a  great  way  off  from 
home,  we  had  leisure  enough  to  ride  gently  back  ;  and 
as  we  returned  my  father  took  occasion  to  enter  into  a 
serious  discourse  with  me  concerning  the  manner  of 
my  settling  in  the  world. 

He  told  me,  with  a  great  deal  of  passion,  that  he 
loved  me  above  all  the  rest  of  his  children,  and  that 
therefore  he  intended  to  do  very  well  for  me ;  and 
that  my  eldest  brother  being  already  married  and 
settled,  he  had  designed  the  same  for  me,  and  pro- 
posed a  very  advantageous  match  for  me,  with  a 
young  lady  of  very  extraordinary  fortune  and  merit, 
and  offered  to  make  a  settlement  of  ^Szooo  per 
annum  on  me,  which  he  said  he  would  purchase  for 
me  without  diminishing  his  paternal  estate. 

There  was  too  much  tenderness  in  this  discourse 
not  to  affect  me  exceedingly.  I  told  him  I  would 
perfectly  resign  myself  unto  his  disposal.  But  as  my 
father  had,  together  with  his  love  for  me,  a  very  nice 
judgment  in  his  discourse,  he  fixed  his  eyes  very  atten- 
tively on  me,  and  though  my  answer  was  without  the 


4         Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

least  reserve,  yet  he  thought  he  saw  some  uneasiness 
in  me  at  the  proposal,  and  from  thence  concluded  that 
my  compliance  was  rather  an  act  of  discretion  than 
inclination ;  and  that,  however  I  seemed  so  absolutely 
given  up  to  what  he  had  proposed,  yet  my  answer 
was  really  an  effect  of  my  obedience  rather  than  my 
choice. 

So  he  returned  very  quick  upon  me :  "  Look  you, 
son,  though  I  give  you  my  own  thoughts  in  the 
matter,  yet  I  would  have  you  be  very  plain  with  me ; 
for  if  your  own  choice  does  not  agree  with  mine,  I 
will  be  your  adviser,  but  will  never  impose  upon  you,  and 
therefore  let  me  know  your  mind  freely.'  "  I  don't 
reckon  myself  capable,  sir,"  said  I,  with  a  great  deal 
of  respect,  "  to  make  so  good  a  choice  for  myself 
as  you  can  for  me ;  and  though  my  opinion  differed 
from  yours,  its  being  your  opinion  would  reform  mine, 
and  my  judgment  would  as  readily  comply  as  my 
duty."  "  I  gather  at  least  from  thence,"  said  my 
father,  "  that  your  designs  lay  another  way  before, 
however  they  may  comply  with  mine ;  and  therefore 
I  would  know  what  it  was  you  would  have  asked  of 
me  if  I  had  not  offered  this  to  you ;  and  you  must  not 
deny  me  your  obedience  in  this,  if  you  expect  I  should 
believe  your  readiness  in  the  other." 

"  Sir,"  said  I,  "  'twas  impossible  I  should  lay  out 
for  myself  just  what  you  have  proposed ;  but  if  my 
inclinations  were  never  so  contrary,  though  at  your 
command  you  shall  know  them,  yet  I  declare  them 
to  be  wholly  subjected  to  your  order.  I  confess  my 
thoughts  did  not  tend  towards  marriage  or  a  settle- 
ment ;  for,  though  I  had  no  reason  to  question  your 
care  of  me,  yet  I  thought  a  gentleman  ought  always 
to  see  something  of  the  world  before  he  confined  him- 
self to  any  part  of  it.  And  if  I  had  been  to  ask  your 
consent  to  anything,  it  should  have  been  to  give  me 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier         5 

leave  to  travel  for  a  short  time,  in  order  to  qualify 
myself  to  appear  at  home  like  a  son  to  so  good  a 
father." 

"  In  what  capacity  would  you  travel  ?  "  replied  my 
father.  "You  must  go  abroad  either  as  a  private 
gentleman,  as  a  scholar,  or  as  a  soldier."  "  If  it  were 
in  the  latter  capacity,  sir,"  said  I,  returning  pretty 
quick,  "I  hope  I  should  not  misbehave  myself;  but 
I  am  not  so  determined  as  not  to  be  ruled  by  your 
judgment."  "  Truly,"  replied  my  father,  "  I  see 
no  war  abroad  at  this  time  worth  while  for  a  man 
to  appear  in,  whether  we  talk  of  the  cause  or  the 
encouragement ;  and  indeed,  son,  I  am  afraid  you 
need  not  go  far  for  adventures  of  that  nature,  for  times 
seem  to  look  as  if  this  part  of  Europe  would  find  us 
work  enough."  My  father  spake  then  relating  to  the 
quarrel  likely  to  happen  between  the  King  of  England 
and  the  Spaniard,*  for  I  believe  he  had  no  notions  of 
a  civil  war  in  his  head. 

In  short,  my  father,  perceiving  my  inclinations  very 
forward  to  go  abroad,  gave  me  leave  to  travel,  upon 
condition  I  would  promise  to  return  in  two  years  at 
farthest,  or  sooner,  if  he  sent  for  me. 

While  I  was  at  Oxford  I  happened  into  the  society 
of  a  young  gentleman,  of  a  good  family,  but  of  a  low 
fortune,  being  a  younger  brother,  and  who  had  indeed 
instilled  into  me  the  first  desires  of  going  abroad,  and 
who,  I  knew,  passionately  longed  to  travel,  but  had 
not  sufficient  allowance  to  defray  his  expenses  as  a 
gentleman.  We  had  contracted  a  very  close  friend- 
ship, and  our  humours  being  very  agreeable  to  one 
another,  we  daily  enjoyed  the  conversation  of  letters. 
He  was  of  a  generous  free  temper,  without  the  least 

*  Upon  the  breach  of  the  match  between  the  King  of 
England  and  the  Infanta  of  Spain;  and  particularly  upon 
the  old  quarrel  of  the  King  of  Bohemia  and  the  Palatinate. 


6         Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

affectation  or  deceit,  a  handsome  proper  person,  a 
strong  body,  very  good  mien,  and  brave  to  the  last 
degree.  His  name  was  Fielding,  and  we  called  him 
Captain,  though  it  be  a  very  unusual  title  in  a  college; 
but  fate  had  some  hand  in  the  title,  for  he  had  cer- 
tainly the  lines  of  a  soldier  drawn  in  his  countenance. 
I  imparted  to  him  the  resolutions  I  had  taken,  and 
how  I  had  my  father's  consent  to  go  abroad,  and 
would  know  his  mind  whether  he  would  go  with  me. 
He  sent  me  word  he  would  go  with  all  his  heart. 

My  father,  when  he  saw  him,  for  I  sent  for  him 
immediately  to  come  to  me,  mightily  approved  my 
choice ;  so  we  got  our  equipage  ready,  and  came  away 
for  London. 

'Twas  on  the  22nd  of  April  1630,  when  we 
embarked  at  Dover,  landed  in  a  few  hours  at  Calais, 
and  immediately  took  post  for  Paris.  I  shall  not 
trouble  the  reader  with  a  journal  of  my  travels,  nor 
with  the  description  of  places,  which  every  geographer 
can  do  better  than  I  ;  but  these  Memoirs  being  only 
a  relation  of  what  happened  either  to  ourselves,  or  in 
our  own  knowledge,  I  shall  confine  myself  to  that  part 
of  it. 

We  had  indeed  some  diverting  passages  in  our  journey 
to  Paris,  as  first,  the  horse  my  comrade  was  upon  fell 
so  very  lame  with  a  slip  that  he  could  not  go,  and 
hardly  stand,  and  the  fellow  that  rid  with  us  express, 
pretended  to  ride  away  to  a  town  five  miles  off  to  get  a 
fresh  horse,  and  so  left  us  on  the  road  with  one  horse 
between  two  of  us.  We  followed  as  well  as  we  could, 
but  being  strangers,  missed  the  way,  and  wandered  a 
great  way  out  the  road.  Whether  the  man  performed 
in  reasonable  time  or  not  we  could  not  be  sure,  but 
if  it  had  not  been  for  an  old  priest,  we  had  never  found 
him.  We  met  this  man,  by  a  very  good  accident,  near  a 
little  village  whereof  he  was  curate.  We  spoke  Latin 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier         7 

enough  just  to  make  him  understand  us,  and  he  did  not 
speak  it  much  better  himself;  but  he  carried  us  into 
the  village  to  his  house,  gave  us  wine  and  bread,  and 
entertained  us  with  wonderful  courtesy.  After  this  he 
sent  into  the  village,  hired  a  peasant,  and  a  horse  for 
my  captain,  and  sent  him  to  guide  us  into  the  road. 
At  parting  he  made  a  great  many  compliments  to  us  in 
French,  which  we  could  just  understand ;  but  the  sum 
was,  to  excuse  him  for  a  question  he  had  a  mind  to 
ask  us.  After  leave  to  ask  what  he  pleased,  it  was 
if  we  wanted  any  money  for  our  journey,  and  pulled 
out  two  pistoles,  which  he  offered  either  to  give  or 
lend  us. 

I  mention  this  exceeding  courtesy  of  the  curate 
because,  though  civility  is  very  much  in  use  in  France, 
and  especially  to  strangers,  yet  'tis  a  very  unusual  thing 
to  have  them  part  with  their  money. 

We  let  the  priest  know,  first,  that  we  did  not  want 
money,  and  next  that  we  were  very  sensible  of  the 
obligation  he  had  put  upon  us ;  and  I  told  him  in 
particular,  if  I  lived  to  see  him  again,  I  would  acknow- 
ledge it. 

This  accident  of  our  horse  was,  as  we  afterwards 
found,  of  some  use  to  us.  We  had  left  our  two 
servants  behind  us  at  Calais  to  bring  our  baggage 
after  us,  by  reason  of  some  dispute  between  the 
captain  of  the  packet  and  the  custom-house  officer, 
which  could  not  be  adjusted,  and  we  were  willing  to 
be  at  Paris.  The  fellows  followed  as  fast  as  they 
could,  and,  as  near  as  we  could  learn,  in  the  time  we 
lost  our  way,  were  robbed,  and  our  portmanteaus  opened. 
They  took  what  they  pleased ;  but  as  there  was  no 
money  there,  but  linen  and  necessaries,  the  loss  was  not 
great. 

Our  guide  carried  us  to  Amiens,  where  we  found  the 
express  and  our  two  servants,  who  the  express  meeting 


8         Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

on  the  road  with  a  spare  horse,  had  brought  back  with 
him  thither. 

We  took  this  for  a  good  omen  of  our  successful 
journey,  having  escaped  a  danger  which  might  hare 
been  greater  to  us  than  it  was  to  our  servants ;  for  the 
highwaymen  in  France  do  not  always  give  a  traveller 
the  civility  of  bidding  him  stand  and  deliver  his  money, 
but  frequently  fire  upon  him  first,  and  then  take  his 
money. 

We  stayed  one  day  at  Amiens,  to  adjust  this  little 
disorder,  and  walked  about  the  town,  and  into  the 
great  church,  but  saw  nothing  very  remarkable  there ; 
but  going  across  a  broad  street  near  the  great  church, 
we  saw  a  crowd  of  people  gazing  at  a  mountebank 
doctor,  who  made  a  long  harangue  to  them  with  a 
thousand  antic  postures,  and  gave  out  bills  this  way, 
and  boxes  of  physic  that  way,  and  had  a  great  trade, 
when  on  a  sudden  the  people  raised  a  cry,  "Larron, 
larron!"  [in  English,  "Thief,  thief "3,  on  the  other 
side  the  street,  and  all  the  auditors  ran  away  from 
Mr  Doctor  to  see  what  the  matter  was.  Among  the 
rest  we  went  to  see,  and  the  case  was  plain  and 
short  enough.  Two  English  gentlemen  and  a  Scotch- 
man, travellers  as  we  were,  were  standing  gazing  at 
this  prating  doctor,  and  one  of  them  catched  a  fellow 
picking  his  pocket.  The  fellow  had  got  some  of 
his  money,  for  he  dropped  two  or  three  pieces  just 
by  him,  and  had  got  hold  of  his  watch,  but  being 
surprised  let  it  slip  again.  But  the  reason  of  telling 
this  story  is  for  the  management  of  it.  This  thief  had 
his  seconds  so  ready,  that  as  soon  as  the  Englishman  had 
seized  him  they  fell  in,  pretended  to  be  mighty  zealous 
for  the  stranger,  takes  the  fellow  by  the  throat,  and 
makes  a  great  bustle ;  the  gentleman  not  doubting  but 
the  man  was  secured  let  go  his  own  hold  of  him,  and 
left  him  to  them.  The  hubbub  was  great,  and  'twas 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier        9 

these  fellows  cried,  "Larron,  larron!"  but  with  a  dex- 
terity peculiar  to  themselves  had  let  the  right  fellow 
go,  and  pretended  to  be  all  upon  one  of  their  own 
gang.  At  last  they  bring  the  man  to  the  gentleman  to 
ask  him  what  the  fellow  had  done,  who,  when  he  saw 
the  person  they  seized  on,  presently  told  them  that 
was  not  the  man.  Then  they  seemed  to  be  in  more 
consternation  than  before,  and  spread  themselves  all 
over  the  street,  crying,  "  Larron,  larron/  "  pretending 
to  search  for  the  fellow ;  and  so  one  one  way,  one 
another,  they  were  all  gone,  the  noise  went  over,  the 
gentlemen  stood  looking  one  at  another,  and  the  bawling 
doctor  began  to  have  the  crowd  about  him  again. 
This  was  the  first  French  trick  I  had  the  opportunity 
of  seeing,  but  I  was  told  they  have  a  great  many  more 
ao  dexterous  as  this. 

We  soon  got  acquaintance  with  these  gentlemen,  who 
were  going  to  Paris  as  well  as  we ;  so  the  next  day 
we  made  up  our  company  with  them,  and  were  a  pretty 
troop  of  five  gentlemen  and  four  servants. 

As  we  had  really  no  design  to  stay  long  at  Paris,  so 
indeed,  excepting  the  city  itself,  there  was  not  much 
to  be  seen  there.  Cardinal  Richelieu,  who  was  not 
only  a  supreme  minister  in  the  Church,  but  Prime 
Minister  in  the  State,  was  now  made  also  General  of 
the  King's  Forces,  with  a  title  never  known  in  France 
before  nor  since,  viz.,  Lieutenant-General  "au  place  du 
Roi,"  in  the  king's  stead,  or,  as  some  have  since  trans- 
lated it,  representing  the  person  of  the  king. 

Under  this  character  he  pretended  to  execute  all 
the  royal  powers  in  the  army  without  appeal  to  the 
king,  or  without  waiting  for  orders  ;  and  having  parted 
from  Paris  the  winter  before  had  now  actually  begun 
the  war  against  the  Duke  of  Savoy,  in  the  process  of 
which  he  restored  the  Duke  of  Mantua,  and  having 
taken  Pignerol  from  the  duke,  put  it  into  such  a  state  of 


io       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

defence  as  the  duke  could  never  force  it  out  of  his 
hands,  and  reduced  the  duke,  rather  by  manage  and 
conduct  than  by  force,  to  make  peace  without  it ;  so 
as  annexing  it  to  the  crown  of  France  it  has  ever  since 
been  a  thorn  in  his  foot  that  has  always  made  the 
peace  of  Savoy  lame  and  precarious,  and  France  has 
since  made  Pignerol  one  of  the  strongest  fortresses  in 
the  world. 

As  the  cardinal,  with  all  the  military  part  of  the 
court,  was  in  the  field,  so  the  king,  to  be  near  him, 
was  gone  with  the  queen  and  all  the  court,  just  before 
I  reached  Paris,  to  reside  at  Lyons.  All  these  con- 
sidered, there  was  nothing  to  do  at  Paris ;  the  court 
looked  like  a  citizen's  house  when  the  family  was  all 
gone  into  the  country,  and  I  thought  the  whole  city 
looked  very  melancholy,  compared  to  all  the  fine  things 
I  had  heard  of  it. 

The  queen-mother  and  her  party  were  chagrined  at 
the  cardinal,  who,  though  he  owed  his  grandeur  to  her 
immediate  favour,  was  now  grown  too  great  any  longer 
to  be  at  the  command  of  her  Majesty,  or  indeed  in  her 
interest ;  and  therefore  the  queen  was  under  dissatis- 
faction, and  her  party  looked  very  much  down. 

The  Protestants  were  everywhere  disconsolate,  for 
the  losses  they  had  received  at  Rochelle,  Nimes,  and 
Montpellier  had  reduced  them  to  an  absolute  depend- 
ence on  the  king's  will,  without  all  possible  hopes  of 
ever  recovering  themselves,  or  being  so  much  as  in  a 
condition  to  take  arms  for  their  religion,  and  therefore, 
the  wisest  of  them  plainly  foresaw  their  own  entire 
reduction,  as  it  since  came  to  pass.  And  I  remember 
very  well  that  a  Protestant  gentleman  told  me  once, 
as  we  were  passing  from  Orleans  to  Lyons,  that  the 
English  had  ruined  them  ;  and  therefore,  says  he,  *«  I 
think  the  next  occasion  the  king  takes  to  use  us  ill,  as 
I  know  'twill  not  be  long  before  he  does,  we  must  all 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       1 1 

fly  over  to  England,  where  you  are  bound  to  maintain 
us  for  having  helped  to  turn  U8  out  of  our  own  country." 
I  asked  him  what  he  meant  by  saying  the  English  had 
done  it  ?  He  returned  short  upon  me :  "I  do  not 
mean,"  says  he,  "  by  not  relieving  Rochelle,  but  by 
helping  to  ruin  Rochelle,  when  you  and  the  Dutch  lent 
ships  to  beat  our  fleet,  which  all  the  ships  in  France 
could  not  have  done  without  you." 

I  was  too  young  in  the  world  to  be  very  sensible  of 
this  before,  and  therefore  was  something  startled  at  the 
charge  ;  but  when  I  came  to  discourse  with  this  gentle- 
man, I  soon  saw  the  truth  of  what  he  said  was  un- 
deniable, and  have  since  reflected  on  it  with  regret, 
that  the  naval  power  of  the  Protestants,  which  was 
then  superior  to  the  royal,  would  certainly  have  been 
the  recovery  of  all  their  fortunes,  had  it  not  been 
unhappily  broke  by  their  brethren  of  England  and 
Holland,  the  former  lending  seven  men-of-war,  and 
the  latter  twenty,  for  the  destruction  of  the  Rochellers' 
fleet;  and  by  these  very  ships  the  Rochellers'  fleet 
were  actually  beaten  and  destroyed,  and  they  never 
afterward  recovered  their  force  at  sea,  and  by  conse- 
quence sunk  under  the  siege,  which  the  English  after- 
wards in  vain  attempted  to  prevent. 

These  things  made  the  Protestants  look  very  dull, 
and  expected  the  ruin  of  all  their  party,  which  had 
certainly  happened  had  the  cardinal  lived  a  few  years 
longer. 

We  stayed  in  Paris  about  three  weeks,  as  well  to 
see  the  court  and  what  rarities  the  place  afforded,  as 
by  an  occasion  which  had  like  to  have  put  a  short 
period  to  our  ramble. 

Walking  one  morning  before  the  gate  of  the  Louvre, 
with  a  design  to  see  the  Swiss  drawn  up,  which  they 
always  did,  and  exercised  just  before  they  relieved  the 
guards,  a  page  came  up  to  me,  and  speaking  English 


12       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

to  me,  "  Sir,"  says  he,  "  the  captain  must  needs  have 
your  immediate  assistance."  I,  that  had  not  the  know- 
ledge of  any  person  in  Paris  but  my  own  companion, 
whom  I  called  captain,  had  no  room  to  question,  but 
it  was  he  that  sent  for  me ;  and  crying  out  hastily 
to  him,  "Where?"  followed  the  fellow  as  fast  as  'twas 
possible.  He  led  me  through  several  passages  which  I 
knew  not,  and  at  last  through  a  tennis-court  and  into 
a  large  room,  where  three  men,  like  gentlemen,  were 
engaged  very  briskly  two  against  one.  The  room  was 
very  dark,  so  that  I  could  not  easily  know  them 
asunder,  but  being  fully  possessed  with  an  opinion 
before  of  my  captain's  danger,  I  ran  into  the  room 
with  my  sword  in  my  hand.  I  had  not  particularly 
engaged  any  of  them,  nor  so  much  as  made  a  pass  at 
any,  when  I  received  a  very  dangerous  thrust  in  my 
thigh,  rather  occasioned  by  my  too  hasty  running  in, 
than  a  real  design  of  the  person ;  but  enraged  at  the 
hurt,  without  examining  who  it  was  hurt  me,  I  threw 
myself  upon  him,  and  run  my  sword  quite  through  his 
body. 

The  novelty  of  the  adventure,  and  the  unexpected 
fall  of  the  man  by  a  stranger  come  in  nobody  knew 
how,  had  becalmed  the  other  two,  that  they  really 
stood  gazing  at  me.  By  this  time  I  had  discovered 
that  my  captain  was  not  there,  and  that  'twas  some 
strange  accident  brought  me  thither.  I  could  speak 
but  little  French,  and  supposed  they  could  speak  no 
English,  so  I  stepped  to  the  door  to  see  for  the  page 
that  brought  me  thither,  but  seeing  nobody  there  and 
the  passage  clear,  I  made  off  as  fast  as  I  could,  without 
speaking  a  word  ;  nor  did  the  other  two  gentlemen  offer 
to  stop  me. 

But  I  was  in  a  strange  confusion  when,  coming  into 
those  entries  and  passages  which  the  page  led  me  through, 
I  could  by  no  means  find  my  way  out.  At  last  seeing 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       13 

a  door  open  that  looked  through  a  house  into  the  street, 
I  went  in,  and  out  at  the  other  door ;  but  then  I  was 
at  as  great  a  loss  to  know  where  I  was,  and  which  was 
the  way  to  my  lodgings.  The  wound  in  my  thigh 
bled  apace,  and  I  could  feel  the  blood  in  my  breeches.  In 
this  interval  came  by  a  chair ;  I  called,  and  went  into 
it,  and  bid  them,  as  well  as  I  could,  go  to  the  Louvre ; 
for  though  I  knew  not  the  name  of  the  street  where  I 
lodged,  I  knew  I  could  find  the  way  to  it  when  I  was 
at  the  Bastile.  The  chairmen  went  on  their  own  way, 
and  being  stopped  by  a  company  of  the  guards  as  they 
went,  set  me  down  till  the  soldiers  were  marched  by ; 
when  looking  out  I  found  I  was  just  at  my  own  lodging, 
and  the  captain  was  standing  at  the  door  looking  for 
me.  I  beckoned  him  to  me,  and,  whispering,  told  him 
I  was  very  much  hurt,  but  bid  him  pay  the  chairmen, 
and  ask  no  questions,  but  come  to  me. 

I  made  the  best  of  my  way  upstairs,  but  had  lost  so 
much  blood,  that  I  had  hardly  spirits  enough  to  keep 
me  from  swooning  till  he  came  in.  He  was  equally  con- 
cerned with  me  to  see  me  in  such  a  bloody  condition,  and 
presently  called  up  our  landlord,  and  he  as  quickly  called 
in  his  neighbours,  that  I  had  a  room  full  of  people  about 
me  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  But  this  had  like  to  have 
been  of  worse  consequence  to  me  than  the  other,  for 
by  this  time  there  was  great  inquiring  after  the  person 
who  killed  a  man  at  the  tennis-court.  My  landlord 
was  then  sensible  of  his  mistake,  and  came  to  me  and 
told  me  the  danger  I  was  in,  and  very  honestly  offered 
to  convey  me  to  a  friend's  of  his,  where  I  should  be 
very  secure ;  I  thanked  him,  and  suffered  myself  to  be 
carried  at  midnight  whither  he  pleased.  He  visited  me 
very  often,  till  I  was  well  enough  to  walk  about,  which 
was  not  in  less  than  ten  days,  and  then  we  thought  fit 
to  be  gone,  so  we  took  post  for  Orleans.  But  when  I 
came  upon  the  road  I  found  myself  in  a  new  error,  for 


14       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

my  wound  opened  again  with  riding,  and  I  was  in  a 
worse  condition  than  before,  being  forced  to  take  up 

at  a  little  village  on  the  road,  called ,  about 

miles  from  Orleans,  where  there  was  no  surgeon  to 
be  had,  but  a  sorry  country  barber,  who  nevertheless 
dressed  me  as  well  as  he  could,  and  in  about  a  week 
more  I  was  able  to  walk  to  Orleans  at  three  times. 
Here  I  stayed  till  I  was  quite  well,  and  then  took  coach 
for  Lyons,  and  so  through  Savoy  into  Italy. 

I  spent  near  two  years'  time  after  this  bad  beginning 
in  travelling  through  Italy,  and  to  the  several  courts  of 
Rome,  Naples,  Venice,  and  Vienna. 

When  I  came  to  Lyons  the  king  was  gone  from 
thence  to  Grenoble  to  meet  the  cardinal,  but  the  queens 
were  both  at  Lyons. 

The  French  affairs  seemed  at  this  time  to  have  but 
an  indifferent  aspect.  There  was  no  life  in  anything  but 
where  the  cardinal  was :  he  pushed  on  everything  with 
extraordinary  conduct,  and  generally  with  success;  he 
had  taken  Susa  and  Pignerol  from  the  Duke  of  Savoy, 
and  was  preparing  to  push  the  duke  even  out  of  all  his 
dominions. 

But  in  the  meantime  everywhere  else  things  looked 
ill ;  the  troops  were  ill-paid,  the  magazines  empty,  the 
people  mutinous,  and  a  general  disorder  seized  the 
minds  of  the  court;  and  the  cardinal,  who  was  the 
soul  of  everything,  desired  this  interview  at  Grenoble, 
in  order  to  put  things  into  some  better  method. 

This  politic  minister  always  ordered  matters  so,  that 
if  there  was  success  in  anything  the  glory  was  his, 
but  if  things  miscarried  it  was  all  laid  upon  the  king. 
This  conduct  was  so  much  the  more  nice,  as  it  is  the 
direct  contrary  to  the  custom  in  like  cases,  where  kings 
assume  the  glory  of  all  the  success  in  an  action,  and 
when  a  thing  miscarries  make  themselves  easy  by 
sacrificing  their  ministers  and  favourites  to  the  com- 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       15 

plaints  and  resentments  of  the  people ;  but  this  accurate 
refined  statesman  got  over  this  point. 

While  we  were  at  Lyons,  and  as  I  remember,  the 
third  day  after  our  coming  thither,  we  had  like  to  have 
been  involved  in  a  state  broil,  without  knowing  where 
we  were.  It  was  of  a  Sunday  in  the  evening,  the  people 
of  Lyons,  who  had  been  sorely  oppressed  in  taxes, 
and  the  war  in  Italy  pinching  their  trade,  began  to  be 
very  tumultuous.  We  found  the  day  before  the  mob  got 
together  in  great  crowds,  and  talked  oddly;  the  king 
was  everywhere  reviled,  and  spoken  disrespectfully  of, 
and  the  magistrates  of  the  city  either  winked  at,  or 
durst  not  attempt  to  meddle,  lest  they  should  provoke 
the  people. 

But  on  Sunday  night,  about  midnight,  we  was  waked 
by  a  prodigious  noise  in  the  street.  I  jumped  out  of 
bed,  and  running  to  the  window,  I  saw  the  street  as 
full  of  mob  as  it  could  hold,  some  armed  with  muskets 
and  halberds,  matched  in  very  good  order ;  others  in 
disorderly  crowds,  all  shouting  and  crying  out,  "  Du 
paix  le  roi,"  and  the  like.  One  that  led  a  great  party 
of  this  rabble  carried  a  loaf  of  bread  upon  the  top  of  a 
pike,  and  other  lesser  loaves,  signifying  the  smallness 
of  their  bread,  occasioned  by  dearness. 

By  morning  this  crowd  was  gathered  to  a  great 
height ;  they  ran  roving  over  the  whole  city,  shut  up 
all  the  shops,  and  forced  all  the  people  to  join  with 
them  from  thence.  They  went  up  to  the  castle,  and  re- 
newing the  clamour,  a  strange  consternation  seized  all 
the  princes. 

They  broke  open  the  doors  of  the  officers,  col- 
lectors of  the  new  taxes,  and  plundered  their  houses, 
and  had  not  the  persons  themselves  fled  in  time  they 
had  been  very  ill-treated. 

The  queen-mother,  as  she  was  very  much  displeased 
to  see  such  consequences  of  the  government,  in  whose 


i6       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

management  she  had  no  share,  so  I  suppose  she  had 
the  less  concern  upon  her.  Howerer,  she  came  into 
the  court  of  the  castle  and  showed  herself  to  the  people, 
gave  money  amongst  them,  and  spoke  gently  to  them ; 
and  by  a  way  peculiar  to  herself,  and  which  obliged  all 
she  talked  with,  she  pacified  the  mob  gradually,  sent 
them  home  with  promises  of  redress  and  the  like ;  and 
so  appeased  this  tumult  in  two  days,  by  her  prudence, 
which  the  guards  in  the  castle  had  small  mind  to 
meddle  with,  and  if  they  had,  would  in  all  probability 
have  made  the  better  side  the  worse. 

There  had  been  several  seditions  of  the  like  nature 
in  sundry  other  parts  of  France,  and  the  very  army 
began  to  murmur,  though  not  to  mutiny,  for  want  of 
provisions. 

This  sedition  at  Lyons  was  not  quite  over  when  we 
left  the  place,  for,  finding  the  city  all  in  a  broil,  we 
considered  we  had  no  business  there,  and  what  the 
consequence  of  a  popular  tumult  might  be  we  did  not 
see,  so  we  prepared  to  be  gone.  We  had  not  rid 
above  three  miles  out  of  the  city  but  we  were  brought 
as  prisoners  of  war,  by  a  party  of  mutineers,  who  had 
been  abroad  upon  the  scout,  and  were  charged  with 
being  messengers  sent  to  the  cardinal  for  forces  to  re- 
duce the  citizens.  With  these  pretences  they  brought 
us  back  in  triumph,  and  the  queen-mother,  being  by 
this  time  grown  something  familiar  to  them,  they 
carried  us  before  her. 

When  they  inquired  of  us  who  we  were,  we  called 
ourselves  Scots ;  for  as  the  English  were  very  much 
out  of  favour  in  France  at  this  time,  the  peace  having 
been  made  not  many  months,  and  not  supposed  to  be 
very  durable,  because  particularly  displeasing  to  the 
people  of  England,  so  the  Scots  were  on  the  other 
extreme  with  the  French.  Nothing  was  so  much 
caressed  as  the  Scots,  and  a  man  had  no  more  to  do  in 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       17 

France,  if  he  would  be  well  received  there,  than  to  say 
he  was  a  Scotchman. 

When  we  came  before  the  queen-mother  she 
seemed  to  receive  us  with  some  stiffness  at  first,  and 
caused  her  guards  to  take  us  into  custody ;  but  as  she 
was  a  lady  of  most  exquisite  politics,  she  did  this  to 
amuse  the  mob,  and  we  were  immediately  after  dismissed; 
and  the  queen  herself  made  a  handsome  excuse  to  us 
for  the  rudeness  we  had  suffered,  alleging  the  troubles 
of  the  times ;  and  the  next  morning  we  had  three 
dragoons  of  the  guards  to  convoy  us  out  of  the  juris- 
diction of  Lyons. 

I  confess  this  little  adventure  gave  me  an  aversion 
to  popular  tumults  all  my  life  after,  and  if  nothing  else 
had  been  in  the  cause,  would  have  biassed  me  to 
espouse  the  king's  party  in  England  when  our  popular 
heats  carried  all  before  it  at  home. 

But  I  must  say,  that  when  I  called  to  mind  since, 
the  address,  the  management,  the  compliance  in  show, 
and  in  general  the  whole  conduct  of  the  queen-mother 
with  the  mutinous  people  of  Lyons,  and  compared  it 
with  the  conduct  of  my  unhappy  master  the  King  of 
England,  I  could  not  but  see  that  the  queen  understood 
much  better  than  King  Charles  the  management  of 
politics  and  the  clamours  of  the  people. 

Had  this  princess  been  at  the  helm  in  England,  she 
would  have  prevented  all  the  calamities  of  the  Civil 
War  here,  and  yet  not  have  parted  with  what  that  good 
prince  yielded  in  order  to  peace  neither.  She  would 
have  yielded  gradually,  and  then  gained  upon  them 
gradually ;  she  would  have  managed  them  to  the  point 
she  had  designed  them,  as  she  did  all  parties  in 
France  ;  and  none  could  effectually  subject  her  but  the 
very  man  she  had  raised  to  be  her  principal  support — 
I  mean  the  cardinal. 

We    went    from    hence  to   Grenoble,  and  arrived 


1 8       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

there  the  same  day  that  the  king  and  the  cardinal 
with  the  whole  court  went  out  to  view  a  body  of 
6000  Swiss  foot,  which  the  cardinal  had  wheedled 
the  cantons  to  grant  to  the  king  to  help  to  ruin  their 
neighbour  the  Duke  of  Savoy. 

The  troops  were  exceeding  fine,  well-accoutred, 
brave,  clean-limbed,  stout  fellows  indeed.  Here  I 
saw  the  cardinal ;  there  was  an  air  of  church  gravity 
in  his  habit,  but  all  the  vigour  of  a  general,  and  the 
sprightliness  of  a  vast  genius  in  his  face.  He  affected 
a  little  stiffness  in  his  behaviour,  but  managed  all  his 
affairs  with  such  clearness,  such  steadiness,  and  such 
application,  that  it  was  no  wonder  he  had  such  success 
in  every  undertaking. 

Here  I  saw  the  king,  whose  figure  was  mean,  his 
countenance  hollow,  and  always  seemed  dejected,  and 
every  way  discovering  that  weakness  in  his  countenance 
that  appeared  in  his  actions. 

If  he  was  ever  sprightly  and  vigorous  it  was  when 
the  cardinal  was  with  him,  for  he  depended  so  much 
on  everything  he  did,  that  he  was  at  the  utmost 
dilemma  when  he  was  absent,  always  timorous,  jealous, 
and  irresolute. 

After  the  review  the  cardinal  was  absent  some  days, 
having  been  to  wait  on  the  queen-mother  at  Lyons, 
where,  as  it  was  discoursed,  they  were  at  least  seem- 
ingly reconciled. 

I  observed  while  the  cardinal  was  gone  there  was 
no  court,  the  king  was  seldom  to  be  seen,  very  small 
attendance  given,  and  no  bustle  at  the  castle ;  but  as 
soon  as  the  cardinal  returned,  the  great  councils  were 
assembled,  the  coaches  of  the  ambassadors  went  every 
day  to  the  castle,  and  a  face  of  business  appeared  upon 
the  whole  court. 

Here  the  measures  of  the  Duke  of  Savoy's  ruin 
were  concerted,  and  in  order  to  it  the  king  and  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       19 

cardinal  put  themselves  at  the  head  of  the  army,  with 
which  they  immediately  reduced  all  Savoy,  took  Cham- 
berri  and  the  whole  duchy  except  Montmelian. 

The  army  that  did  this  was  not  above  22,000  men, 
including  the  Swiss,  and  but  indifferent  troops  neither, 
especially  the  French  foot,  who,  compared  to  the 
infantry  I  have  since  seen  in  the  German  and  Swedish 
armies,  were  not  fit  to  be  called  soldiers.  On  the 
other  hand,  considering  the  Savoyards  and  Italian 
troops,  they  were  good  troops  ;  but  the  cardinal's 
conduct  made  amends  for  all  these  deficiencies. 

From  hence  I  went  to  Pignerol,  which  was  then 
little  more  than  a  single  fortification  on  the  hill  near 
the  town  called  St  Bride's,  but  the  situation  of  that 
was  very  strong.  I  mention  this  because  of  the  pro- 
digious works  since  added  to  it,  by  which  it  has  since 
obtained  the  name  of  "the  right  hand  of  France."  They 
had  begun  a  new  line  below  the  hill,  and  some  works 
were  marked  out  on  the  side  of  the  town  next  the  fort ; 
but  the  cardinal  afterwards  drew  the  plan  of  the  works 
with  his  own  hand,  by  which  it  was  made  one  of  the 
strongest  fortresses  in  Europe. 

While  I  was  at  Pignerol,  the  governor  of  Milan,  for 
the  Spaniards,  came  with  an  army  and  sat  down  before 
Casale.  The  grand  quarrel,  and  for  which  the  war  in 
this  part  of  Italy  was  begun,  was  this:  The  Spaniards 
and  Germans  pretended  to  the  duchy  of  Mantua;  the 
Duke  of  Nevers,  a  Frenchman,  had  not  only  a  title  to 
it,  but  had  got  possession  of  it ;  but  being  ill-supported 
by  the  French,  was  beaten  out  by  the  Imperialists,  and 
after  a  long  siege  the  Germans  took  Mantua  itself,  and 
drove  the  poor  duke  quite  out  of  the  country. 

The  taking  of  Mantua  elevated  the  spirits  of  the 
Duke  of  Savoy,  and  the  Germans  and  Spaniards  bt  ing 
now  at  more  leisure,  with  a  complete  army  came  to 
his  assistance,  and  formed  the  siege  of  Montferrat. 


2o       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

For  as  the  Spaniards  pushed  the  Duke  of  Mantua, 
so  the  French  by  way  of  diversion  lay  hard  upon  the 
Duke  of  Savoy.  They  had  seized  Montferrat,  and  held 
it  for  the  Duke  of  Mantua,  and  had  a  strong  French 
garrison  under  Thoiras,  a  brave  and  experienced  com- 
mander ;  and  thus  affairs  stood  when  we  came  into  the 
French  army. 

I  had  no  business  there  as  a  soldier,  but  having 
passed  as  a  Scotch  gentleman  with  the  mob  at  Lyons, 
and  after  with  her  Majesty  the  queen- mother,  when 
we  obtained  the  guard  of  her  dragoons,  we  had  also 
her  Majesty's  pass,  with  which  we  came  and  went 
where  we  pleased.  And  the  cardinal,  who  was  then 
not  on  very  good  terms  with  the  queen,  but  willing  to 
keep  smooth  water  there,  when  two  or  three  times  our 
passes  came  to  be  examined,  showed  a  more  than 
ordinary  respect  to  us  on  that  very  account,  our  passes 
being  from  the  queen. 

Casale  being  besieged,  as  I  have  observed,  began  to 
be  in  danger,  for  the  cardinal,  who  'twas  thought  had 
formed  a  design  to  ruin  Savoy,  was  more  intent  upon 
that  than  upon  the  succour  of  the  Duke  of  Mantua ; 
but  necessity  calling  upon  him  to  deliver  so  great  a 
captain  as  Thoiras,  and  not  to  let  such  a  place  as  Casale 
fall  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy,  the  king,  or  cardinal 
rather,  ordered  the  Duke  of  Montmorency,  and  the 
Marechal  D'Effiat,  with  10,000  foot  and  2000  horse, 
to  march  and  join  the  Marechals  De  La  Force  and 
Schomberg,  who  lay  already  with  an  army  on  the 
frontiers  of  Genoa,  but  too  weak  to  attempt  the  raising 
the  siege  of  Casale. 

As  all  men  thought  there  would  be  a  battle  between 
the  French  and  the  Spaniards,  I  could  not  prevail 
with  myself  to  lose  the  opportunity,  and  therefore  by 
the  help  of  the  passes  above  mentioned,  I  came  to  the 
French  army  under  the  Duke  of  Montmorency.  We 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       21 

marched  through  the  enemy's  country  with  great  bold- 
ness and  no  small  hazard,  for  the  Duke  of  Savoy 
appeared  frequently  with  great  bodies  of  horse  on 
the  rear  of  the  army,  and  frequently  skirmished  with 
our  troops,  in  one  of  which  I  had  the  folly — I  can  call  it 
no  better,  for  I  had  no  business  there — to  go  out  and 
see  the  sport,  as  the  French  gentlemen  called  it.  I 
was  but  a  raw  soldier,  and  did  not  like  the  sport  at  all, 
for  this  party  was  surrounded  by  the  Duke  of  Savoy, 
and  almost  all  killed,  for  as  to  quarter  they  neither 
asked  nor  gave.  I  ran  away  very  fairly,  one  of  the 
first,  and  my  companion  with  me,  and  by  the  goodness 
of  our  horses  got  out  of  the  fray,  and  being  not  much 
known  in  the  army,  we  came  into  the  camp  an  hour  or  two 
after,  as  if  we  had  been  only  riding  abroad  for  the  air. 

This  little  rout  made  the  general  very  cautious,  for 
the  Savoyards  were  stronger  in  horse  by  three  or  four 
thousand,  and  the  army  always  marched  in  a  body,  and 
kept  their  parties  in  or  very  near  hand. 

I  escaped  another  rub  in  this  French  army  about  five 
days  after,  which  had  like  to  have  made  me  pay  dear 
for  my  curiosity. 

The  Duke  de  Montmorency  and  the  Marechal 
Schomberg  joined  their  army  about  four  or  five  days 
after,  and  immediately,  according  to  the  cardinal's 
instructions,  put  themselves  on  the  march  for  the  relief 
of  Casale. 

The  army  had  marched  over  a  great  plain,  with 
some  marshy  grounds  on  the  right  and  the  Po  on  the 
left,  and  as  the  country  was  so  well  discovered  that 
'twas  thought  impossible  any  mischief  should  happen, 
the  generals  observed  the  less  caution.  At  the  end  of 
this  plain  was  a  long  wood  and  a  lane  or  narrow  defile 
through  the  middle  of  it. 

Through  this  pass  the  army  was  to  march,  and  the 
van  began  to  file  through  it  about  four  o'clock.  By 


22       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

three  hours'  time  all  the  array  was  got  through,  or  into 
the  pass,  and  the  artillery  was  just  entered  when  the 
Duke  of  Savoy,  with  4000  horse  and  1 500  dragoons, 
with  every  horseman  a  footman  behind  him,  whether 
he  had  swam  the  Po  or  passed  it  above  at  a  bridge, 
and  made  a  long  march  after,  was  not  examined,  but 
he  came  boldly  up  the  plain  and  charged  our  rear  with 
a  great  deal  of  fury. 

Our  artillery  was  in  the  lane,  and  as  it  was  impos- 
sible to  turn  them  about  and  make  way  for  the  army, 
so  the  rear  was  obliged  to  support  themselves  and 
maintain  the  fight  for  above  an  hour  and  a  half. 

In  this  time  we  lost  abundance  of  men,  and  if  it  had 
not  been  for  two  accidents  all  that  line  had  been  cut 
off.  One  was,  that  the  wood  was  so  near  that  those 
regiments  which  were  disordered  presently  sheltered 
themselves  in  the  wood ;  the  other  was,  that  by  this 
time  the  Marechal  Schomberg,  with  the  horse  of  the 
van,  began  to  get  back  through  the  lane,  and  to  make 
good  the  ground  from  whence  the  other  had  been 
beaten,  till  at  last  by  this  means  it  came  to  almost  a 
pitched  battle. 

There  were  two  regiments  of  French  dragoons  who 
did  excellent  service  in  this  action,  and  maintained 
their  ground  till  they  were  almost  all  killed. 

Had  the  Duke  of  Savoy  contented  himself  with  the 
defeat  of  five  regiments  on  the  right,  which  he  quite 
broke  and  drove  into  the  wood,  and  with  the  slaughter 
and  havoc  which  he  had  made  among  the  rest,  he  had 
come  off  with  honour,  and  might  have  called  it  a 
victory ;  but  endeavouring  to  break  the  whole  party 
and  carry  off  some  cannon,  the  obstinate  resistance 
of  these  few  dragoons  lost  him  his  advantages,  and 
held  him  in  play  till  so  many  fresh  troops  got  through 
the  pass  again  as  made  us  too  strong  for  him,  and  had 
not  night  parted  them  he  had  been  entirely  defeated. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       23 

At  last,  finding  our  troops  increase  and  spread  them- 
selves on  his  flank,  he  retired  and  gave  over.  We  had 
no  great  stomach  to  pursue  him  neither,  though  some 
horse  were  ordered  to  follow  a  little  way. 

The  duke  lost  above  a  thousand  men,  and  we 
almost  twice  as  many,  and  but  for  those  dragoons 
had  lost  the  whole  rear-guard  and  half  our  cannon. 
I  was  in  a  very  sorry  case  in  this  action  too.  I  was 
with  the  rear  in  the  regiment  of  horse  of  Perigoort, 
with  a  captain  of  which  regiment  I  had  contracted 
some  acquaintance.  I  would  have  rid  off  at  first,  as 
the  captain  desired  me,  but  there  was  no  doing  it,  for 
the  cannon  was  in  the  lane,  and  the  horse  and  dragoons 
of  the  van  eagerly  pressing  back  through  the  lane  must 
have  run  me  down  or  carried  me  with  them.  As  for 
the  wood,  it  was  a  good  shelter  to  save  one's  life,  but 
was  so  thick  there  was  no  passing  it  on  horseback. 

Our  regiment  was  one  of  the  first  that  was  broke,  and 
being  all  in  confusion,  with  the  Duke  of  Savoy's  men 
at  our  heels,  away  we  ran  into  the  wood.  Never  was 
there  so  much  disorder  among  a  parcel  of  runaways 
as  when  we  came  to  this  wood  ;  it  was  so  exceeding 
bushy  and  thick  at  the  bottom  there  was  no  entering  it, 
and  a  volley  of  small  shot  from  a  regiment  of  Savoy's 
dragoons  poured  in  upon  us  at  our  breaking  into  the 
wood  made  terrible  work  among  our  horses. 

For  my  part  I  was  got  into  the  wood,  but  was 
forced  to  quit  my  horse,  and  by  that  means,  with  a 
great  deal  of  difficulty,  got  a  little  farther  in,  where 
there  was  a  little  open  place,  and  being  quite  spent 
with  labouring  among  the  bushes  I  sat  down  resolving 
to  take  my  fate  there,  let  it  be  what  it  would,  for  I  was 
not  able  to  go  any  farther.  I  had  twenty  or  thirty 
more  in  the  same  condition  came  to  me  in  less  than 
half-an-hour,  and  here  we  waited  very  securely  the 
success  of  the  battle,  which  was  as  before. 


24       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

It  was  no  small  relief  to  those  with  me  to  hear  the 
Savoyards  were  beaten,  for  otherwise  they  had  all  been 
lost;  as  for  me,  I  confess,  I  was  glad  as  it  was  because 
of  the  danger,  but  otherwise  I  cared  not  much  which 
had  the  better,  for  I  designed  no  service  among  them. 

One  kindness  it  did  me,  that  I  began  to  consider 
what  I  had  to  do  here,  and  as  I  could  give  but  a  very 
slender  account  of  myself  for  what  it  was  I  run  all 
these  risks,  so  I  resolved  they  should  fight  it  among 
themselves,  for  I  would  come  among  them  no  more. 

The  captain  with  whom,  as  I  noted  above,  I  had 
contracted  some  acquaintance  in  this  regiment,  was 
killed  in  this  action,  and  the  French  had  really  a  great 
blow  here,  though  they  took  care  to  conceal  it  all  they 
could;  and  I  cannot,  without  smiling,  read  some  of  the 
histories  and  memoirs  of  this  action,  which  they  are 
not  ashamed  to  call  a  victory. 

We  marched  on  to  Saluzzo,  and  the  next  day  the 
Duke  of  Savoy  presented  himself  in  battalia  on  the 
other  side  of  a  small  river,  giving  us  a  fair  challenge  to 
pass  and  engage  him.  We  always  said  in  our  camp 
that  the  orders  were  to  fight  the  Duke  of  Savoy 
wherever  we  met  him ;  but  though  he  braved  us  in  our 
view  we  did  not  care  to  engage  him,  but  we  brought 
Saluzzo  to  surrender  upon  articles,  which  the  duke 
could  not  relieve  without  attacking  our  camp,  which 
he  did  not  care  to  do. 

The  next  morning  we  had  news  of  the  surrender  of 
Mantua  to  the  Imperial  army.  We  heard  of  it  first  from 
the  Duke  of  Savoy's  cannon,  which  he  fired  by  way 
of  rejoicing,  and  which  seemed  to  make  him  amends 
for  the  loss  of  Saluzzo. 

As  this  was  a  mortification  to  the  French,  so  it 
quite  damped  the  success  of  the  campaign,  for  the 
Duke  de  Montmorency  imagining  that  the  Imperial 
general  would  send  immediate  assistance  to  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       25 

Marquis  Spinola,  who  besieged  Casale,  they  called 
frequent  councils  of  war  what  course  to  take,  and  at 
last  resolved  to  halt  in  Piedmont.  A  few  days  after 
their  resolutions  were  changed  again  by  the  news  of 
the  death  of  the  Duke  of  Savoy,  Charles  Emanuel, 
who  died,  as  some  say,  agitated  with  the  extremes  of 
joy  and  grief. 

This  put  our  generals  upon  considering  again 
whether  they  should  march  to  the  relief  of  Casale,  but 
the  chimera  of  the  Germans  put  them  by,  and  so  they 
took  up  quarters  in  Piedmont.  They  took  several  small 
places  from  the  Duke  of  Savoy,  making  advantage  of 
the  consternation  the  duke's  subjects  were  in  on  the 
death  of  their  prince,  and  spread  themselves  from  the 
seaside  to  the  banks  of  the  Po.  But  here  an  enemy 
did  that  for  them  which  the  Savoyards  could  not,  for 
the  plague  got  into  their  quarters  and  destroyed  abun- 
dance of  people,  both  of  the  army  and  of  the  country. 

I  thought  then  it  was  time  for  me  to  be  gone,  for  I 
had  no  manner  of  courage  for  that  risk;  and  I  think 
verily  I  was  more  afraid  of  being  taken  sick  in  a  strange 
country  than  ever  I  was  of  being  killed  in  battle.  Upon 
this  resolution  I  procured  a  pass  to  go  for  Genoa,  and 
accordingly  began  my  journey,  but  was  arrested  at 
Villa  Franca  by  a  slow  lingering  fever,  which  held  me 
about  five  days,  and  then  turned  to  a  burning  malignancy, 
and  at  last  to  the  plague.  My  friend,  the  captain,  never 
left  me  night  nor  day ;  and  though  for  four  days  more 
I  knew  nobody,  nor  was  capable  of  so  much  as  think- 
ing of  myself,  yet  it  pleased  God  that  the  distemper 
gathered  in  my  neck,  swelled  and  broke.  During  the 
swelling  I  was  raging  mad  with  the  violence  of  pain, 
which  being  so  near  my  head  swelled  that  also  in 
proportion,  that  my  eyes  were  swelled  up,  and  for 
twenty-four  hours  my  tongue  and  mouth  ;  then,  as  my 
servant  told  me,  all  the  physicians  gave  me  over,  as 


26       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

past  all  remedy,  but  by  the  good  providence  of  God 
the  swelling  broke. 

The  prodigious  collection  of  matter  which  this  swell- 
ing discharged  gave  me  immediate  relief,  and  T  became 
sensible  in  less  than  an  hour's  time  ;  and  in  two  hours 
or  thereabouts  fell  into  a  little  slumber  which  recovered 
my  spirits  and  sensibly  revived  me.  Here  I  lay  by  it 
till  the  middle  of  September.  My  captain  fell  sick 
after  me,  but  recovered  quickly.  His  man  had  the 
plague,  and  died  in  two  days  ;  my  man  held  it  out  well. 

About  the  middle  of  September  we  heard  of  a 
truce  concluded  between  all  parties,  and  being  un- 
willing to  winter  at  Villa  Franca,  I  got  passes,  and 
though  we  were  both  but  weak,  we  began  to  travel  in 
litters  for  Milan. 

And  here  I  experienced  the  truth  of  an  old  English 
proverb,  that  standers-by  see  more  than  the  gamesters. 

The  French,  Savoyards,  and  Spaniards  made  this 
peace  or  truce  all  for  separate  and  several  grounds,  and 
every  one  were  mistaken. 

The  French  yielded  to  it  because  they  had  given 
over  the  relief  of  Casale,  and  were  very  much  afraid  it 
would  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Marquis  Spinola.  The 
Savoyards  yielded  to  it  because  they  were  afraid  the 
French  would  winter  in  Piedmont ;  the  Spaniards 
yielded  to  it  because  the  Duke  of  Savoy  being  dead, 
and  the  Count  de  Colalto,  the  Imperial  general,  giving 
no  assistance,  and  his  army  weakened  by  sickness  and 
the  fatigues  of  the  siege,  he  foresaw  he  should  never 
take  the  town,  and  wanted  but  to  come  off  with  honour. 

The  French  were  mistaken,  because  really  Spinola 
was  so  weak  that  had  they  marched  on  into  Montferrat 
the  Spaniards  must  have  raised  the  siege  ;  the  Duke  of 
Savoy  was  mistaken,  because  the  plague  had  so  weakened 
the  French  that  they  durst  not  have  stayed  to  winter 
in  Piedmont ;  and  Spinola  was  mistaken,  for  though  he 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       27 

was  very  slow,  if  he  had  stayed  before  the  town  one 
fortnight  longer,  Thoiras  the  governor  must  have  sur- 
rendered, being  brought  to  the  last  extremity. 

Of  all  these  mistakes  the  French  had  the  advantage, 
for  Casale  was  relieved,  the  army  had  time  to  be 
recruited,  and  the  French  had  the  best  of  it  by  an  early 
campaign. 

I  passed  through  Montferrat  in  my  way  to  Milan  just 
as  the  truce  was  declared,  and  saw  the  miserable  remains 
of  the  Spanish  army,  who  by  sickness,  fatigue,  hard  duty, 
the  sallies  of  the  garrison  and  such  like  consequences, 
were  reduced  to  less  than  2000  men,  and  of  them 
above  1000  lay  wounded  and  sick  in  the  camp. 

Here  were  several  regiments  which  I  saw  drawn  out 
to  their  arms  that  could  not  make  up  above  seventy  or 
eighty  men,  officers  and  all,  and  those  half  starved  with 
hunger,  almost  naked,  and  in  a  lamentable  condition. 
From  thence  I  went  into  the  town,  and  there  things 
were  still  in  a  worse  condition,  the  houses  beaten  down, 
the  walls  and  works  ruined,  the  garrison,  by  continual 
duty,  reduced  from  4500  men  to  less  than  800,  with- 
out clothes,  money,  or  provisions,  the  brave  governor 
weak  with  continual  fatigue,  and  the  whole  face  of 
things  in  a  miserable  case. 

The  French  generals  had  just  sent  them  30,000 
crowns  for  present  supply,  which  heartened  them  a 
little,  but  had  not  the  truce  been  made  as  it  was,  they 
must  have  surrendered  upon  what  terms  the  Spaniards 
had  pleased  to  make  them. 

Never  were  two  armies  in  such  fear  of  one  another 
with  so  little  cause ;  the  Spaniards  afraid  of  the 
French  whom  the  plague  had  devoured,  and  the 
French  afraid  of  the  Spaniards  whom  the  siege  had 
almost  ruined. 

The  grief  of  this  mistake,  together  with  the  sense 
of  his  master,  the  Spaniards,  leaving  him  without 


28       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

supplies  to  complete  the  siege  of  Casale,  so  affected  the 
Marquis  Spinola,  that  he  died  for  grief,  and  in  him 
fell  the  last  of  that  rare  breed  of  Low  Country  soldiers, 
who  gave  the  world  so  great  and  just  a  character  of 
the  Spanish  infantry,  as  the  best  soldiers  of  the  world ; 
a  character  which  we  see  them  so  very  much  degene- 
rated from  since,  that  they  hardly  deserve  the  name  of 
soldiers. 

I  tarried  at  Milan  the  rest  of  the  winter,  both  for 
the  recovery  of  my  health,  and  also  for  supplies  from 
England. 

Here  it  was  I  first  heard  the  name  of  Gustavus 
Adolphus,  the  king  of  Sweden,  who  now  began  his 
war  with  the  emperor ;  and  while  the  king  of  France 
was  at  Lyons,  the  league  with  Sweden  was  made,  in 
which  the  French  contributed  1,200,000  crowns  in 
money,  and  600,000  per  annum  to  the  attempt  of 
Gustavus  Adolphus.  About  this  time  he  landed  in 
Pomerania,  took  the  towns  of  Stettin  and  Stralsund, 
and  from  thence  proceeded  in  that  prodigious  manner 
of  which  I  shall  have  occasion  to  be  very  particular 
in  the  prosecution  of  these  Memoirs. 

I  had  indeed  no  thoughts  of  seeing  that  king  or  his 
armies.  I  had  been  so  roughly  handled  already,  that  I 
had  given  over  the  thoughts  of  appearing  among  the 
fighting  people,  and  resolved  in  the  spring  to  pursue 
my  journey  to  Venice,  and  so  for  the  rest  of  Italy. 
Yet  I  cannot  deny  that  as  every  Gazette  gave  us  some 
accounts  of  the  conquests  and  victories  of  this  glorious 
prince,  it  prepossessed  my  thoughts  with  secret  wishes  of 
seeing  him,  but  these  were  so  young  and  unsettled,  that 
I  drew  no  resolutions  from  them  for  a  long  while  after. 

About  the  middle  of  January  I  left  Milan  and  came 
to  Genoa,  from  thence  by  sea  to  Leghorn,  then  to 
Naples,  Rome,  and  Venice,  but  saw  nothing  in  Italy 
that  gave  me  any  diversion. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       29 

As  for  what  is  modern,  I  saw  nothing  but  lewdness, 
private  murders,  stabbing  men  at  the  corner  of  a  street, 
or  in  the  dark,  hiring  of  bravos,  and  the  like ;  all  the 
diversions  here  ended  in  whoring,  gaming,  and  sodomy. 
These  were  to  me  the  modern  excellencies  of  Italy  ? 
and  I  had  no  gust  to  antiquities. 

'Twas  pleasant  indeed  when  I  was  at  Rome  to  say 
here  stood  the  Capitol,  there  the  Colossus  of  Nero,  here 
was  the  Amphitheatre  of  Titus,  there  the  Aqueduct  of 

,  here  the  Forum,  there  the  Catacombs,  here  the 

Temple  of  Venus,  there  of  Jupiter,  here  the  Pantheon, 
and  the  like ;  but  I  never  designed  to  write  a  book. 
As  much  as  was  useful  I  kept  in  my  head,  and  for  the 
rest,  I  left  it  to  others. 

I  observed  the  people  degenerated  from  the  ancient 
glorious  inhabitants,  who  were  generous,  brave,  and  the 
most  valiant  of  all  nations,  to  a  vicious  baseness  of  soul, 
barbarous,  treacherous,  jealous  and  revengeful,  lewd 
and  cowardly,  intolerably  proud  and  haughty,  bigoted 
to  blind,  incoherent  devotion,  and  the  grossest  of 
idolatry. 

Indeed,  I  think  the  unsuitableness  of  the  people  made 
the  place  unpleasant  to  me,  for  there  is  so  little  in  a 
country  to  recommend  it  when  the  people  disgrace  it, 
that  no  beauties  of  the  creation  can  make  up  for  the 
want  of  those  excellencies  which  suitable  society  pro- 
cure the  defect  of.  This  made  Italy  a  very  unpleasant 
country  to  me  ;  the  people  were  the  foil  to  the  place, 
all  manner  of  hateful  vices  reigning  in  their  general 
way  of  living. 

I  confess  I  was  not  very  religious  myself,  and  being 
come  abroad  into  the  world  young  enough,  might  easily 
have  been  drawn  into  evils  that  had  recommended 
themselves  with  any  tolerable  agreeableness  to  nature 
and  common  manners  ;  but  when  wickedness  presented 
itself  full-grown  in  its  grossest  freedoms  and  liberties, 


30       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

it  quite  took  away  all  the  gust  to  vice  that  the  devil 
had  furnished  me  with,  and  in  this  I  cannot  but  relate 
one  scene  which  passed  between  nobody  but  the  devil 
and  myself. 

At  a  certain  town  in  Italy,  which  shall  be  nameless, 
because  I  won't  celebrate  the  proficiency  of  one  place 
more  than  another,  when  I  believe  the  whole  country 
equally  wicked,  I  was  prevailed  upon  rather  than 
tempted,  a  la  courtezan. 

If  I  should  describe  the  woman  I  must  give  a 
very  mean  character  of  my  own  virtue  to  say  I  was 
allured  by  any  but  a  woman  of  an  extraordinary  figure ; 
her  face,  shape,  mien,  and  dress,  I  may,  without  vanity, 
say,  the  finest  that  I  ever  saw.  When  I  had  admit- 
tance into  her  apartments,  the  riches  and  magnificence 
of  them  astonished  me,  the  cupboard  or  cabinet  of 
plate,  the  jewels,  the  tapestry,  and  everything  in  pro- 
portion, made  me  question  whether  I  was  not  in  the 
chamber  of  some  lady  of  the  best  quality ;  but  when 
after  some  conversation  I  found  that  it  was  really 
nothing  but  a  courtezan — in  English,  a  common  street 
whore,  a  punk  of  the  trade — I  was  amazed,  and  my 
inclination  to  her  person  began  to  cool.  Her  conversa- 
tion exceeded,  if  possible,  the  best  of  quality,  and  was, 
I  must  own,  exceeding  agreeable ;  she  sung  to  her 
lute,  and  danced  as  fine  as  ever  I  saw,  and  thus 
diverted  me  two  hours  before  anything  else  was  dis- 
coursed of.  But  when  the  vicious  part  came  on  the 
stage,  I  blush  to  relate  the  confusion  I  was  in,  and 
when  she  made  a  certain  motion,  by  which  I  under- 
stood she  might  be  made  use  of,  either  as  a  lady,  or  as 

•,  I  was  quite  thunderstruck,  all  the  vicious  part  of 

my  thoughts  vanished,  the  place  filled  me  with  horror, 
and  I  was  all  over  disorder  and  distraction. 

I  began,  however,  to  recollect  where  I  was,  and  that 
in  this  country  these  were  people  not  to  be  affronted ; 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       31 

and  though  she  easily  saw  the  disorder  I  was  in, 
she  turned  it  off  with  admirable  dexterity,  began  to 
talk  again  a  la  gallant,  received  me  as  a  visitant,  offered 
me  sweetmeats  and  some  wine. 

Here  I  began  to  be  in  more  confusion  than  before, 
for  I  concluded  she  would  neither  offer  me  to  eat  or  to 
drink  now  without  poison,  and  I  was  very  shy  of  tasting 
her  treat ;  but  she  scattered  this  fear  immediately  by 
readily  and  of  her  own  accord  not  only  tasting  but 
eating  freely  of  everything  she  gave  me.  Whether  she 
perceived  my  wariness,  or  the  reason  of  it,  I  know  not ; 
I  could  not  help  banishing  my  suspicion,  the  obliging 
carriage  and  strange  charm  of  her  conversation  had  so 
much  power  of  me  that  I  both  ate  and  drank  with  her 
at  all  hazards. 

When  I  offered  to  go,  and  at  parting  presented 
her  five  pistoles,  I  could  not  prevail  with  her  to 
take  them,  when  she  spoke  some  Italian  proverb 
which  I  could  not  readily  understand,  but  by  my 
guess  it  seemed  to  imply  that  she  would  not  take 
the  pay,  having  not  obliged  me  otherwise.  At  last 
I  laid  the  pieces  on  her  toilet,  and  would  not  receive 
them  again,  upon  which  she  obliged  me  to  pass  my 
word  to  visit  her  again,  else  she  would  by  no  means 
accept  my  present. 

I  confess  I  had  a  strong  inclination  to  visit  her 
again,  and  besides  thought  myself  obliged  to  it  in 
honour  to  my  parole.  But  after  some  strife  in  my 
thoughts  about  it,  I  resolved  to  break  my  word  with 
her;  when  going  at  vespers  one  evening  to  see  their 
devotions  I  happened  to  meet  this  very  lady  very 
devoutly  going  to  her  prayers. 

At  her  coming  out  of  the  church  I  spoke  to  her,  she 
paid  me  her  respects  with  a  "  Seignior  Inglese,"  and 
some  words  she  said  in  Spanish,  smiling,  which  I  did  not 
understand.  I  cannot  say  here,  so  clearly  as  I  would 


32       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

be  glad  I  might,  that  I  broke  my  word  with  her ;  but 
if  I  saw  her  any  more  I  saw  nothing  of  what  gave  me 
so  much  offence  before. 

The  end  of  my  relating  this  story  is  answered  in 
describing  the  manner  of  their  address,  without  bring- 
ing myself  to  confession.  If  I  did  anything  I  have 
some  reason  to  be  ashamed  of,  it  may  be  a  less  crime 
to  conceal  it  than  expose  it. 

The  particulars  related,  however,  may  lead  the  reader 
of  these  sheets  to  a  view  of  what  gave  me  a  particular 
disgust  at  this  pleasant  part  of  the  world,  as  they  pre- 
tend to  call  it,  and  made  me  quit  the  place  sooner  than 
travellers  use  to  do  that  come  thither  to  satisfy  their 
curiosity. 

The  prodigious  stupid  bigotry  of  the  people  also  was 
irksome  to  me ;  I  thought  there  was  something  in  it 
very  sordid.  The  entire  empire  the  priests  have  over 
both  the  souls  and  bodies  of  the  people,  gave  me  a 
specimen  of  that  meanness  of  spirit,  which  is  nowhere 
else  to  be  seen  but  in  Italy,  especially  in  the  city  of 
Rome. 

At  Venice  I  perceived  it  quite  different,  the  civil 
authority  having  a  visible  superiority  over  the  ecclesi- 
astic, and  the  Church  being  more  subject  there  to  the 
State  than  in  any  other  part  of  Italy. 

For  these  reasons  I  took  no  pleasure  in  filling  my 
memoirs  of  Italy  with  remarks  of  places  or  things.  All 
the  antiquities  and  valuable  remains  of  the  Roman 
nation  are  done  better  than  I  can  pretend  to  by  such 
people  who  made  it  more  their  business ;  as  for  me,  I 
went  to  see,  and  not  to  write,  and  as  little  thought  then 
of  these  Memoirs  as  I  ill  furnished  myself  to  write 
them. 

I  left  Italy  in  April,  and  taking  the  tour  of  Bavaria, 
though  very  much  out  of  the  way,  I  passed  through 
Munich,  Passau,  Lintz,  and  at  last  to  Vienna. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       33 

I  came  to  Vienna  the  roth  of  April  1631,  intending 
to  have  gone  from  thence  down  the  Danube  into 
Hungary,  and  by  means  of  a  pass,  which  I  had  obtained 
from  the  English  ambassador  at  Constantinople,  I 
designed  to  have  seen  all  the  great  towns  on  the 
Danube,  which  were  then  in  the  hands  of  the  Turks, 
and  which  I  had  read  much  of  in  the  history  of  the 
war  between  the  Turks  and  the  Germans ;  but  I  was 
diverted  from  my  design  by  the  following  occasion. 

There  had  been  a  long  bloody  war  in  the  empire  of 
Germany  for  twelve  years,  between  the  emperor,  the 
Duke  of  Bavaria,  the  King  of  Spain,  and  the  Popish 
princes  and  electors  on  the  one  side,  and  the  Protestant 
princes  on  the  other ;  and  both  sides  having  been 
exhausted  by  the  war,  and  even  the  Catholics  them- 
selves beginning  to  dislike  the  growing  power  of  the 
house  of  Austria,  'twas  thought  all  parties  were  willing 
to  make  peace.  Nay,  things  were  brought  to  that 
pass  that  some  of  the  Popish  princes  and  electors 
began  to  talk  of  making  alliances  with  the  King  of 
Sweden. 

Here  it  is  necessary  to  observe,  that  the  two  Dukes 
of  Mecklenburg  having  been  dispossessed  of  most  of 
their  dominions  by  the  tyranny  of  the  Emperor  Fer- 
dinand, and  being  in  danger  of  losing  the  rest,  earnestly 
solicited  the  King  of  Sweden  to  come  to  their  assist- 
ance ;  and  that  prince,  as  he  was  related  to  the  house 
of  Mecklenburg,  and  especially  as  he  was  willing  to 
lay  hold  of  any  opportunity  to  break  with  the  emperor, 
against  whom  he  had  laid  up  an  implacable  prejudice, 
was  very  ready  and  forward  to  come  to  their  assist- 
ance. 

The  reasons  of  his  quarrel  with  the  emperor  were 
grounded  upon  the  Imperialists  concerning  themselves 
in  the  war  of  Poland,  where  the  emperor  had  sent 
8000  foot  and  2000  horse  to  join  the  Polish  army 

c 


34       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

against  the  king,  and  had  thereby  given  some  check 
to  his  arms  in  that  war. 

In  pursuance,  therefore,  of  his  resolution  to  quarrel 
with  the  emperor,  but  more  particularly  at  the  instances 
of  the  princes  above-named,  his  Swedish  Majesty  had 
landed  the  year  before  at  Stralsund  with  about  12,000 
men,  and  having  joined  with  some  forces  which  he 
had  left  in  Polish  Prussia,  all  which  did  not  make 
30,000  men,  he  began  a  war  with  the  emperor,  the 
greatest  in  event,  filled  with  the  most  famous  battles, 
sieges,  and  extraordinary  actions,  including  its  wonder- 
ful success  and  happy  conclusion,  of  any  war  ever 
maintained  in  the  world. 

The  King  of  Sweden  had  already  taken  Stettin, 
Stralsund,  Rostock,  Wismar,  and  all  the  strong  places 
on  the  Baltic,  and  began  to  spread  himself  in  Germany. 
He  had  made  a  league  with  the  French,  as  I  observed 
in  my  story  of  Saxony ;  he  had  now  made  a  treaty 
with  the  Duke  of  Brandenburg,  and,  in  short,  began  to 
be  terrible  to  the  empire. 

In  this  conjuncture  the  emperor  called  the  General 
Diet  of  the  empire  to  be  held  at  Ratisbon,  where,  as 
was  pretended,  all  sides  were  to  treat  of  peace  and  to 
join  forces  to  beat  the  Swedes  out  of  the  empire. 
Here  the  emperor,  by  a  most  exquisite  management, 
brought  the  affairs  of  the  Diet  to  a  conclusion,  ex- 
ceedingly to  his  own  advantage,  and  to  the  farther 
oppression  of  the  Protestants ;  and,  in  particular,  in 
that  the  war  against  the  King  of  Sweden  was  to  be 
carried  on  in  such  manner  as  that  the  whole  burthen 
and  charge  would  lie  on  the  Protestants  themselves, 
and  they  be  made  the  instruments  to  oppose  their  best 
friends.  Other  matters  also  ended  equally  to  their 
disadvantage,  as  the  methods  resolved  on  to  recover 
the  Church  lands,  and  to  prevent  the  education  of  the 
Protestant  clergy ;  and  what  remained  was  referred  to 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       35 

another  General  Diet  to  be  held  at  Frankfort-au-Main 
in  August  1631. 

I  won't  pretend  to  say  the  other  Protestant  princes 
of  Germany  had  never  made  any  overtures  to  the 
King  of  Sweden  to  come  to  their  assistance,  but  'tis 
plain  they  had  entered  into  no  league  with  him  ;  that 
appears  from  the  difficulties  which  retarded  the  fixing 
of  the  treaties  afterward,  both  with  the  Dukes  of 
Brandenburg  and  Saxony,  which  unhappily  occasioned 
the  ruin  of  Magdeburg. 

But  'tis  plain  the  Swede  was  resolved  on  a  war  with 
the  emperor.  His  Swedish  Majesty  might,  and  indeed 
could  not  but  foresee  that  if  he  once  showed  himself 
with  a  sufficient  force  on  the  frontiers  of  the  empire,  all 
the  Protestant  princes  would  be  obliged  by  their  interest 
or  by  his  arms  to  fall  in  with  him,  and  this  the  conse- 
quence made  appear  to  be  a  just  conclusion,  for  the 
Electors  of  Brandenburg  and  Saxony  were  both  forced 
to  join  with  him. 

First,  they  were  willing  to  join  with  him — at  least 
they  could  not  find  in  their  hearts  to  join  with  the 
emperor,  of  whose  power  they  had  such  just  apprehen- 
sions. They  wished  the  Swedes  success,  and  would 
have  been  very  glad  to  have  had  the  work  done  at 
another  man's  charge,  but,  like  true  Germans,  they 
were  more  willing  to  be  saved  than  to  save  themselves, 
and  therefore  hung  back  and  stood  upon  terms. 

Secondly,  they  were  at  last  forced  to  it.  The  first  was 
forced  to  join  by  the  King  of  Sweden  himself,  who 
being  come  so  far  was  not  to  be  dallied  with,  and 
had  not  the  Duke  of  Brandenburg  complied  as  he 
did,  he  had  been  ruined  by  the  Swede.  The  Saxon 
was  driven  into  the  arms  of  the  Swede  by  force,  for 
Count  Tilly,  ravaging  his  country,  made  him  comply 
with  any  terms  to  be  saved  from  destruction. 

Thus  matters  stood  at  the  end  of  the  Diet  at  Ratis- 


36       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

bon.  The  King  of  Sweden  began  to  see  himself  leagued 
against  at  the  Diet  both  by  Protestant  and  Papist ;  and, 
as  I  have  often  heard  his  Majesty  say  since,  he  had 
resolved  to  try  to  force  them  off  from  the  emperor, 
and  to  treat  them  as  enemies  equally  with  the  rest  if 
they  did  not. 

But  the  Protestants  convinced  him  soon  after,  that 
though  they  were  tricked  into  the  outward  appearance 
of  a  league  against  him  at  Ratisbon,  they  had  no  such 
intentions ;  and  by  their  ambassadors  to  him  let  him 
know  that  they  only  wanted  his  powerful  assistance 
to  defend  their  councils,  when  they  would  soon  con- 
vince him  that  they  had  a  due  sense  of  the  emperor's 
designs,  and  would  do  their  utmost  for  their  liberty. 
And  these  I  take  to  be  the  first  invitations  the  King 
of  Sweden  had  to  undertake  the  Protestant  cause  as 
such,  and  which  entitled  him  to  say  he  fought  for  the 
liberty  and  religion  of  the  German  nation. 

I  have  had  some  particular  opportunities  to  hear 
these  things  from  the  mouths  of  some  of  the  very 
princes  themselves,  and  therefore  am  the  forwarder 
to  relate  them ;  and  I  place  them  here  because,  pre- 
vious to  the  part  I  acted  on  this  bloody  scene,  'tis 
necessary  to  let  the  reader  into  some  part  of  the  story, 
and  to  show  him  in  what  manner  and  on  what  occa- 
sions this  terrible  war  began. 

The  Protestants,  alarmed  at  the  usage  they  had  met 
with  at  the  former  Diet,  had  secretly  proposed  among 
themselves  to  form  a  general  union  or  confederacy, 
for  preventing  that  ruin  which  they  saw,  unless  some 
speedy  remedies  were  applied,  would  be  inevitable. 
The  Elector  of  Saxony,  the  head  of  the  Protestants, 
a  vigorous  and  politic  prince,  was  the  first  that  moved 
it ;  and  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse,  a  zealous  and  gallant 
prince,  being  consulted  with,  it  rested  a  great  while 
between  those  two,  no  method  being  found  practicable 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       37 

to  bring  it  to  pass,  the  emperor  being  so  powerful  in 
all  parts,  that  they  foresaw  the  petty  princes  would  not 
dare  to  negotiate  an  affair  of  such  a  nature,  being  sur- 
rounded with  the  Imperial  forces,  who  by  their  two 
generals,  Wallenstein  and  Tilly,  kept  them  in  continual 
subjection  and  terror. 

This  dilemma  had  like  to  have  stifled  the  thoughts 
of  the  union  as  a  thing  impracticable,  when  one 
Seigensius,  a  Lutheran  minister,  a  person  of  great 
abilities,  and  one  whom  the  Elector  of  Saxony  made 
great  use  of  in  matters  of  policy  as  well  as  religion, 
contrived  for  them  this  excellent  expedient. 

I  had  the  honour  to  be  acquainted  with  this  gentle- 
man while  I  was  at  Leipsic.  It  pleased  him  exceed- 
ingly to  have  been  the  contriver  of  so  fine  a  structure 
as  the  Conclusions  of  Leipsic,  and  he  was  glad  to  be 
entertained  on  that  subject.  I  had  the  relation  from 
his  own  mouth,  when,  but  very  modestly,  he  told  me 
he  thought  '  twas  an  inspiration  darted  on  a  sudden  into 
his  thoughts,  when  the  Duke  of  Saxony  calling  him 
into  his  closet  one  morning,  with  a  face  full  of  concern, 
shaking  his  head,  and  looking  very  earnestly,  "  What 
will  become  of  us,  doctor?"  said  the  duke;  "we 
shall  all  be  undone  at  Frankfort-au-Main."  "  Why 
so,  please  your  highness  ?  "  says  the  doctor.  "  Why, 
they  will  fight  with  the  King  of  Sweden  with  our 
armies  and  our  money,"  says  the  duke,  "  and  devour 
our  friends  and  ourselves  by  the  help  of  our  friends  and 
ourselves."  "  But  what  is  become  of  the  confederacy, 
then,"  said  the  doctor,  "  which  your  highness  had 
so  happily  framed  in  your  thoughts,  and  which  the 
Landgrave  of  Hesse  was  so  pleased  with  ? "  "  Be- 
come of  it?"  says  the  duke,  "'tis  a  good  thought 
enough,  but  'tis  impossible  to  bring  it  to  pass  among 
so  many  members  of  the  Protestant  princes  as  are  to 
be  consulted  with,  for  we  neither  have  time  to  treat, 


38       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

nor  will  half  of  them  dare  to  negotiate  the  matter,  the 
Imperialists  being  quartered  in  their  very  bowels." 
"  But  may  not  some  expedient  be  found  out,"  says 
the  doctor,  "  to  bring  them  all  together  to  treat  of  it 
in  a  general  meeting?"  "'Tis  well  proposed,"  says 
the  duke,  "  but  in  what  town  or  city  shall  they  as- 
semble where  the  very  deputies  shall  not  be  besieged 
by  Tilly  or  Wallenstein  in  fourteen  days'  time,  and 
sacrificed  to  the  cruelty  and  fury  of  the  Emperor 
Ferdinand  ? "  "  Will  your  highness  be  the  easier  in 
it,"  replies  the  doctor,  "  if  a  way  may  be  found  out  to 
call  such  an  assembly  upon  other  causes,  at  which  the 
emperor  may  have  no  umbrage,  and  perhaps  give  his 
assent  ?  You  know  the  Diet  at  Frankfort  is  at  hand ; 
'tis  necessary  the  Protestants  should  have  an  assembly 
of  their  own  to  prepare  matters  for  the  General  Diet, 
and  it  may  be  no  difficult  matter  to  obtain  it."  The 
duke,  surprised  with  joy  at  the  motion,  embraced  the 
doctor  with  an  extraordinary  transport.  "  Thou  hast 
done  it,  doctor,"  said  he,  and  immediately  caused  him 
to  draw  a  form  of  a  letter  to  the  emperor,  which  he 
did  with  the  utmost  dexterity  of  style,  in  which  he 
was  a  great  master,  representing  to  his  Imperial 
Majesty  that,  in  order  to  put  an  end  to  the  troubles  of 
Germany,  his  Majesty  would  be  pleased  to  permit  the 
Protestant  princes  of  the  empire  to  hold  a  Diet  to 
themselves,  to  consider  of  such  matters  as  they  were 
to  treat  of  at  the  General  Diet,  in  order  to  conform 
themselves  to  the  will  and  pleasure  of  his  Imperial 
Majesty,  to  drive  out  foreigners,  and  settle  a  lasting 
peace  in  the  empire.  He  also  insinuated  something 
of  their  resolutions  unanimously  to  give  their  suffrages 
in  favour  of  the  King  of  Hungary  at  the  election 
of  a  king  of  the  Romans,  a  thing  which  he  knew  the 
emperor  had  in  his  thought,  and  would  push  at  with 
all  his  might  at  the  Diet.  This  letter  was  sent,  and  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       39 

bait  so  neatly  concealed,  that  the  Electors  of  Bavaria 
and  Mentz,  the  King  of  Hungary,  and  several  of  the 
Popish  princes,  not  foreseeing  that  the  ruin  of  them  all 
lay  in  the  bottom  of  it,  foolishly  advised  the  emperor 
to  consent  to  it. 

In  consenting  to  this  the  emperor  signed  his  own 
destruction,  for  here  began  the  conjunction  of  the 
German  Protestants  with  the  Swede,  which  was  the 
fatallest  blow  to  Ferdinand,  and  which  he  could  never 
recover. 

Accordingly  the  Diet  was  held  at  Leipsic,  February 
8, 1630,  where  the  Protestants  agreed  on  several  heads  for 
their  mutual  defence,  which  were  the  grounds  of  the 
following  war.  These  were  the  famous  Conclusions  of 
Leipsic,  which  so  alarmed  the  emperor  and  the  whole 
empire,  that  to  crush  it  in  the  beginning,  the  emperor 
commanded  Count  Tilly  immediately  to  fall  upon  the 
Landgrave  of  Hesse  and  the  Duke  of  Saxony  as  the 
principal  heads  of  the  union ;  but  it  was  too  late. 

The  Conclusions  were  digested  into  ten  heads: — 

1.  That  since  their  sins  had  brought  God's  judg- 
ments upon  the  whole  Protestant  Church,  they  should 
command  public  prayers  to  be  made  to  Almighty  God 
for  the  diverting  the  calamities  that  attended  them. 

2.  That  a  treaty  of  peace   might  be   set  on  foot, 
in  order  to  come  to  a  right  understanding  with  the 
Catholic  princes. 

3.  That  a  time  for  such  a  treaty  being  obtained, 
they  should  appoint  an  assembly  of  delegates  to  meet 
preparatory  to  the  treaty. 

4.  That  all   their   complaints    should   be   humbly 
represented  to  his  Imperial  Majesty  and  the  Catholic 
Electors,  in  order  to  a  peaceable  accommodation. 

5.  That  they  claim  the  protection  of  the  emperor, 
according  to  the  laws  of  the  empire,  and  the  present 
emperor's  solemn  oath  and  promise. 


40       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

6.  That  they  would  appoint  deputies  who  should 
meet  at  certain  times    to    consult   of   their   common 
interests,  and   who   should   be   always  empowered  to 
conclude  of  what  should  be  thought  needful  for  their 
safety. 

7.  That  they  will  raise  a  competent  force  to  main- 
tain and  defend  their  liberties,  rights,  and  religion. 

8.  That  it  is  agreeable  to  the  Constitution  of  the 
empire,  concluded  in  the  Diet  at  Augsburg,  to  do  so. 

9.  That  the  arming  for  their  necessary  defence  shall 
by  no  means  hinder  their  obedience  to  his  Imperial 
Majesty,  but  that  they  will  still  continue  their  loyalty 
to  him. 

10.  They  agree  to  proportion  their  forces,  which  in 
all  amounted  to  70,000  men. 

The  emperor,  exceedingly  startled  at  the  Conclusions, 
issued  out  a  severe  proclamation  or  ban  against  them, 
which  imported  much  the  same  thing  as  a  declaration 
of  war,  and  commanded  Tilly  to  begin,  and  immediately 
to  fall  on  the  Duke  of  Saxony  with  all  the  fury  imagin- 
able, as  I  have  already  observed. 

Here  began  the  flame  to  break  out ;  for  upon  the 
emperor's  ban,  the  Protestants  send  away  to  the  King 
of  Sweden  for  succour. 

His  Swedish  Majesty  had  already  conquered  Meck- 
lenburg, and  part  of  Pomerania,  and  was  advancing 
with  his  victorious  troops,  increased  by  the  addition  of 
some  regiments  raised  in  those  parts,  in  order  to  carry 
on  the  war  against  the  emperor,  having  designed  to 
follow  up  the  Oder  into  Silesia,  and  so  to  push  the  war 
home  to  the  emperor's  hereditary  countries  of  Austria 
and  Bohemia,  when  the  first  messengers  came  to  him 
in  this  case ;  but  this  changed  his  measures,  and  brought 
him  to  the  frontiers  of  Brandenburg  resolved  to  answer 
the  desires  of  the  Protestants.  But  here  the  Duke  of 
Brandenburg  began  to  halt,  making  some  difficulties 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       41 

and  demanding  terms,  which  drove  the  king  to  use 
some  extremities  with  him,  and  stopped  the  Swedes 
for  a  while,  who  had  otherwise  been  on  the  banks  of 
the  Elbe  as  soon  as  Tilly,  the  Imperial  general,  had 
entered  Saxony,  which  if  they  had  done,  the  miserable 
destruction  of  Magdeburg  had  been  prevented,  as  I 
observed  before. 

The  king  had  been  invited  into  the  union,  and  when 
he  first  came  back  from  the  banks  of  the  Oder  he  had 
accepted  it,  and  was  preparing  to  back  it  with  all  his 
power. 

The  Duke  of  Saxony  had  already  a  good  army, 
which  he  had  with  infinite  diligence  recruited,  and 
mustered  them  under  the  cannon  of  Leipsic.  The 
King  of  Sweden  having,  by  his  ambassador  at  Leipsic, 
entered  into  the  union  of  the  Protestants,  was  advancing 
victoriously  to  their  aid,  just  as  Count  Tilly  had  entered 
the  Duke  of  Saxony's  dominions.  The  fame  of  the 
Swedish  conquests,  and  of  the  hero  who  commanded 
them,  shook  my  resolution  of  travelling  into  Turkey, 
being  resolved  to  see  the  conjunction  of  the  Protestant 
armies,  and  before  the  fire  was  broke  out  too  far  to 
take  the  advantage  of  seeing  both  sides. 

While  I  remained  at  Vienna,  uncertain  which  way 
I  should  proceed,  I  remember  I  observed  they  talked 
of  the  King  of  Sweden  as  a  prince  of  no  considera- 
tion, one  that  they  might  let  go  on  and  tire  himself 
in  Mecklenburg  and  thereabout,  till  they  could  find 
leisure  to  deal  with  him,  and  then  might  be  crushed  as 
they  pleased ;  but  'tis  never  safe  to  despise  an  enemy, 
so  this  was  not  an  enemy  to  be  despised,  as  they 
afterwards  found. 

As  to  the  Conclusions  of  Leipsic,  indeed,  at  first 
they  gave  the  Imperial  court  some  uneasiness,  but  when 
they  found  the  Imperial  armies  began  to  fright  the 
members  out  of  the  union,  and  that  the  several  branches 


42       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

had  no  considerable  forces  on  foot,  it  was  the  general 
discourse  at  Vienna  that  the  union  at  Leipsic  only 
gave  the  emperor  an  opportunity  to  crush  absolutely 
the  Dukes  of  Saxony,  Brandenburg,  and  the  Land- 
grave of  Hesse,  and  they  looked  upon  it  as  a  thing 
certain. 

I  never  saw  any  real  concern  in  their  faces  at 
Vienna  till  news  came  to  court  that  the  King  of 
Sweden  had  entered  into  the  union ;  but  as  this  made 
them  very  uneasy,  they  began  to  move  the  powerfullest 
methods  possible  to  divert  this  storm  ;  and  upon  this 
news  Tilly  was  hastened  to  fall  into  Saxony  before  this 
union  could  proceed  to  a  conjunction  of  forces.  This 
was  certainly  a  very  good  resolution,  and  no  measure 
could  have  been  more  exactly  concerted,  had  not  the 
diligence  of  the  Saxons  prevented  it. 

The  gathering  of  this  storm,  which  from  a  cloud 
began  to  spread  over  the  empire,  and  from  the  little 
duchy  of  Mecklenburg  began  to  threaten  all  Germany, 
absolutely  determined  me,  as  I  noted  before,  as  to 
travelling,  and  laying  aside  the  thoughts  of  Hungary, 
I  resolved,  if  possible,  to  see  the  King  of  Sweden's 
army. 

I  parted  from  Vienna  the  middle  of  May,  and  took 
post  for  Great  Glogau  in  Silesia,  as  if  I  had  purposed 
to  pass  into  Poland,  but  designing  indeed  to  go  down 
the  Oder  to  Custrim  in  the  marquisate  of  Branden- 
burg, and  so  to  Berlin.  But  when  I  came  to  the 
frontiers  of  Silesia,  though  I  had  passes,  I  could  go  no 
farther,  the  guards  on  all  the  frontiers  were  so  strict, 
so  I  was  obliged  to  come  back  into  Bohemia,  and 
went  to  Prague.  From  hence  I  found  I  could  easily 
pass  through  the  Imperial  provinces  to  the  lower 
Saxony,  and  accordingly  took  passes  for  Hamburg, 
designing,  however,  to  use  them  no  farther  than  I  found 
occasion. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       43 

By  virtue  of  these  passes  I  got  into  the  Imperial 
army ,  under  Count  Tilly,  then  at  the  siege  of  Magde- 
burg, May  the  2nd. 

I  confess  I  did  not  foresee  the  fate  of  this  city, 
neither,  I  believe,  did  Count  Tilly  himself  expect  to 
glut  his  fury  with  so  entire  a  desolation,  much  less  did 
the  people  expect  it.  I  did  believe  they  must  capitu- 
late, and  I  perceived  by  discourse  in  the  army  that 
Tilly  would  give  them  but  very  indifferent  conditions ; 
but  it  fell  out  otherwise.  The  treaty  of  surrender  was, 
as  it  were,  begun,  nay,  some  say  concluded,  when  some 
of  the  out-guards  of  the  Imperialists  finding  the  citizens 
had  abandoned  the  guards  of  the  works,  and  looked  to 
themselves  with  less  diligence  than  usual,  they  broke 
in,  carried  an  half-moon,  sword  in  hand,  with  little 
resistance ;  and  though  it  was  a  surprise  on  both  sides, 
the  citizens  neither  fearing,  nor  the  army  expecting  the 
occasion,  the  garrison,  with  as  much  resolution  as  could 
be  expected  under  such  a  fright,  flew  to  the  walls, 
twice  beat  the  Imperialists  off,  but  fresh  men  coming 
up,  and  the  administrator  of  Magdeburg  himself 
being  wounded  and  taken,  the  enemy  broke  in,  took 
the  city  by  storm,  and  entered  with  such  terrible  fury, 
that,  without  respect  to  age  or  condition,  they  put  all 
the  garrison  and  inhabitants,  man,  woman,  and  child,  to 
the  sword,  plundered  the  city,  and  when  they  had  done 
this  set  it  on  fire. 

This  calamity  sure  was  the  dreadfullest  sight  that 
ever  I  saw ;  the  rage  of  the  Imperial  soldiers  was  most 
intolerable,  and  not  to  be  expressed.  Of  25,000, 
some  said  30,000  people,  there  was  not  a  soul  to  be 
seen  alive,  till  the  flames  drove  those  that  were  hid 
in  vaults  and  secret  places  to  seek  death  in  the  streets 
rather  than  perish  in  the  fire.  Of  these  miserable 
creatures  some  were  killed  too  by  the  furious  soldiers, 
but  at  last  they  saved  the  lives  of  such  as  came 


44       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

out  of  their  cellars  and  holes,  and  so  about  two  thou- 
sand poor  desperate  creatures  were  left.  The  exact 
number  of  those  that  perished  in  this  city  could  never 
be  known,  because  those  the  soldiers  had  first  butchered 
the  flames  afterwards  devoured. 

I  was  on  the  other  side  of  the  Elbe  when  this 
dreadful  piece  of  butchery  was  done.  The  city  of 
Magdeburg  had  a  sconce  or  fort  over  against  it  called 
the  toll-house,  which  joined  to  the  city  by  a  very  fine 
bridge  of  boats.  This  fort  was  taken  by  the  Im- 
perialists a  few  days  before,  and  having  a  mind  to  see 
it,  and  the  rather  because  from,  thence  I  could  have  a 
very  good  view  of  the  city,  I  was  going  over  Tilly's 
bridge  of  boats  to  view  this  fort.  About  ten  o'clock 
in  the  morning  I  perceived  they  were  storming  by  the 
firing,  and  immediately  all  ran  to  the  works  ;  I  little 
thought  of  the  taking  the  city,  but  imagined  it  might 
be  some  outwork  attacked,  for  we  all  expected  the 
city  would  surrender  that  day,  or  next,  and  they  might 
have  capitulated  upon  very  good  terms. 

Being  upon  the  works  of  the  fort,  on  a  sudden  I 
heard  the  dreadfullest  cry  raised  in  the  city  that  can 
be  imagined  ;  'tis  not  possible  to  express  the  manner  of 
it,  and  I  could  see  the  women  and  children  running 
about  the  streets  in  a  most  lamentable  condition. 

The  city  wall  did  not  run  along  the  side  where  the 
river  was  with  so  great  a  height,  but  we  could  plainly 
see  the  market-place  and  the  several  streets  which  run 
down  to  the  river.  In  about  an  hour's  time  after  this 
first  cry  all  was  in  confusion ;  there  was  little  shoot- 
ing, the  execution  was  all  cutting  of  throats  and  mere 
house  murders.  The  resolute  garrison,  with  the  brave 
Baron  Falkenberg,  fought  it  out  to  the  last,  and  were 
cut  in  pieces,  and  by  this  time  the  Imperial  soldiers 
having  broke  open  the  gates  and  entered  on  all  sides, 
the  slaughter  was  very  dreadful.  We  could  see  the  poor 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       45 

people  in  crowds  driven  down  the  streets,  flying  from 
the  fury  of  the  soldiers,  who  followed  butchering  them 
as  fast  at  they  could,  and  refused  mercy  to  anybody, 
till  driving  them  to  the  river's  edge,  the  desperate 
wretches  would  throw  themselves  into  the  river,  where 
thousands  of  them  perished,  especially  women  and 
children.  Several  men  that  could  swim  got  over  to  our 
side,  where  the  soldiers  not  heated  with  fight  gave  them 
quarter,  and  took  them  up,  and  I  cannot  but  do  this 
justice  to  the  German  officers  in  the  fort :  they  had 
five  small  flat  boats,  and  they  gave  leave  to  the  soldiers 
to  go  off  in  them,  and  get  what  booty  they  could,  but 
charged  them  not  to  kill  anybody,  but  take  them  all 
prisoners. 

Nor  was  their  humanity  ill  rewarded,  for  the  soldiers, 
wisely  avoiding  those  places  where  their  fellows  were 
employed  in  butchering  the  miserable  people,  rowed 
to  other  places,  where  crowds  of  people  stood  crying 
out  for  help,  and  expecting  to  be  every  minute  either 
drowned  or  murdered  ;  of  these  at  sundry  times  they 
fetched  over  near  six  hundred,  but  took  care  to  take 
in  none  but  such  as  offered  them  good  pay. 

Never  was  money  or  jewels  of  greater  service  than 
now,  for  those  that  had  anything  of  that  sort  to  offer 
were  soonest  helped. 

There  was  a  burgher  of  the  town  who,  seeing  a  boat 
coming  near  him,  but  out  of  his  call,  by  the  help  of  a 
speaking  trumpet,  told  the  soldiers  in  it  he  would  give 
them  20,000  dollars  to  fetch  him  off.  They  rowed 
close  to  the  shore,  and  got  him  with  his  wife  and  six 
children  into  the  boat,  but  «uch  throngs  of  people  got 
about  the  boat  that  had  like  to  have  sunk  her,  so  that 
the  soldiers  were  fain  to  drive  a  great  many  out  again 
by  main  force,  and  while  they  were  doing  this  some  of 
the  enemies  coming  down  the  street  desperately  drove 
them  all  into  the  water 


46       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  boat,  however,  brought  the  burgher  and  his  wife 
and  children  safe,  and  though  they  had  not  all  that 
wealth  about  them,  yet  in  jewels  and  money  he  gave 
them  so  much  as  made  all  the  fellows  very  rich. 

I  cannot  pretend  to  describe  the  cruelty  of  this  day  : 
the  town  by  five  in  the  afternoon  was  all  in  a  flame ; 
the  wealth  consumed  was  inestimable,  and  a  loss  to  the 
very  conqueror.  I  think  there  was  little  or  nothing  left 
but  the  great  church  and  about  a  hundred  houses. 

This  was  a  sad  welcome  into  the  army  for  me,  and 
gave  me  a  horror  and  aversion  to  the  emperor's  people, 
as  well  as  to  his  cause.  I  quitted  the  camp  the  third 
day  after  this  execution,  while  the  fire  wag  hardly  out 
in  the  city ;  and  from  thence  getting  safe-conduct  to 
pass  into  the  Palatinate,  I  turned  out  of  the  road  at 
a  small  village  on  the  Elbe,  called  Emerfield,  and  by 
ways  and  towns  I  can  give  but  small  account  of,  having 
a  boor  for  our  guide,  who  we  could  hardly  understand, 
I  arrived  at  Leipsic  on  the  lyth  of  May. 

We  found  the  elector  intense  upon  the  strengthening 
of  his  army,  but  the  people  in  the  greatest  terror  ima- 
ginable, every  day  expecting  Tilly  with  the  German 
army,  who  by  his  cruelty  at  Magdeburg  was  become 
so  dreadful  to  the  Protestants  that  they  expected  no 
mercy  wherever  he  came. 

The  emperor's  power  was  made  so  formidable  to  all 
the  Protestants,  particularly  since  the  Diet  at  Ratisbon 
left  them  in  a  worse  case  than  it  found  them,  that  they 
had  not  only  formed  the  Conclusions  of  Leipsic,  which 
all  men  looked  on  as  the  effect  of  desperation  rather 
than  any  probable  means  of  their  deliverance,  but  had 
privately  implored  the  protection  and  assistance  of 
foreign  powers,  and  particularly  the  King  of  Sweden, 
from  whom  they  had  promises  of  a  speedy  and  power- 
ful assistance.  And  truly  if  the  Swede  had  not  with  a 
very  strong  hand  rescued  them,  all  their  Conclusions 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       47 

at  Leipsic  had  served  but  to  hasten  their  ruin.  I 
remember  very  well  when  I  was  in  the  Imperial  army 
they  discoursed  with  such  contempt  of  the  forces  of 
the  Protestants,  that  not  only  the  Imperialists  but  the 
Protestants  themselves  gave  them  up  as  lost.  The 
emperor  had  not  less  than  200,000  men  in  several 
armies  on  foot,  who  most  of  them  were  on  the  back 
of  the  Protestants  in  every  corner.  If  Tilly  did  but 
write  a  threatening  letter  to  any  city  or  prince  of  the 
union,  they  presently  submitted,  renounced  the  Con- 
clusions of  Leipsic,  and  received  Imperial  garrisons, 
as  the  cities  of  Ulm  and  Memmingen,  the  duchy 
of  Wirtemberg,  and  several  others,  and  almost  all 
Suaben. 

Only  the  Duke  of  Saxony  and  the  Landgrave  of 
Hesse  upheld  the  drooping  courage  of  the  Protes- 
tants, and  refused  all  terms  of  peace,  slighted  all  the 
threatenings  of  the  Imperial  generals,  and  the  Duke 
ol  Brandenburg  was  brought  in  afterward  almost  by 
force. 

The  Duke  of  Saxony  mustered  his  forces  under  the 
walls  of  Leipsic,  and  I  having  returned  to  Leipsic, 
two  days  before,  saw  them  pass  the  review.  The 
duke,  gallantly  mounted,  rode  through  the  ranks, 
attended  by  his  field-marshal  Arnheim,  and  seemed 
mighty  well  pleased  with  them,  and  indeed  the  troops 
made  a  very  fine  appearance ;  but  I  that  had  seen 
Tilly's  army  and  his  old  weather-beaten  soldiers, 
whose  discipline  and  exercises  were  so  exact,  and  their 
courage  so  often  tried,  could  not  look  on  the  Saxon 
army  without  some  concern  for  them  when  I  con- 
sidered who  they  had  to  deal  with.  Tilly's  men  were 
rugged  surly  fellows,  their  faces  had  an  air  of  hardy 
courage,  mangled  with  wounds  and  scars,  their  armour 
showed  the  bruises  of  musket  bullets,  and  the  rust  of 
the  winter  storms.  I  observed  of  them  their  clothes 


48       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

were  always  dirty,  but  their  arms  were  clean  and 
bright ;  they  were  used  to  camp  in  the  open  fields,  and 
sleep  in  the  frosts  and  rain ;  their  horses  were  strong 
and  hardy  like  themselves,  and  well  taught  their 
exercises  ;  the  soldiers  knew  their  business  so  exactly 
that  general  orders  were  enough  ;  every  private  man 
was  fit  to  command,  and  their  wheelings,  march- 
ings, counter-marchings  and  exercise  were  done  with 
such  order  and  readiness,  that  the  distinct  words  of 
command  were  hardly  of  any  use  among  them  ;  they 
were  flushed  with  victory,  and  hardly  knew  what  it 
was  to  fly. 

There  had  passed  some  messages  between  Tilly  and 
the  duke,  and  he  gave  always  such  ambiguous  answers 
as  he  thought  might  serve  to  gain  time ;  but  Tilly 
was  not  to  be  put  off  with  words,  and  drawing  his  army 
towards  Saxony,  sends  four  propositions  to  him  to  sign, 
and  demands  an  immediate  reply.  The  propositions 
were  positive. 

1.  To  cause  his  troops  to  enter  into  the  emperor's 
service,  and  to  march  in  person  with  them  against  the 
King  of  Sweden. 

2.  To    give    the    Imperial    army    quarters    in    his 
country,  and  supply  them  with  necessary  provisions. 

3.  To  relinquish  the  union  of  Leipsic,  and  disown 
the  ten  Conclusions. 

4.  To  make  restitution  of  the  goods  and  lands  of 
the  Church. 

The  duke  being  pressed  by  Tilly's  trumpeter  for  an 
immediate  answer  sat  all  night,  and  part  of  the  next 
day,  in  council  with  his  privy  counsellors,  debating 
what  reply  to  give  him,  which  at  last  was  concluded, 
in  short,  that  he  would  live  and  die  in  defence  of  the 
Protestant  religion,  and  the  Conclusions  of  Leipsic,  and 
bade  Tilly  defiance. 

The  die  being  thus  cast,  he  immediately  decamped 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       49 

with  his  whole  army  for  Torgau,  fearing  that  Tilly 
should  get  there  before  him,  and  so  prevent  his  con- 
junction with  the  Swede.  The  duke  had  not  yet 
concluded  any  positive  treaty  with  the  King  of  Swede- 
land,  and  the  Duke  of  Brandenburg  having  made 
some  difficulty  of  joining,  they  both  stood  on  some 
niceties  till  they  had  like  to  have  ruined  themselves 
all  at  once. 

Brandenburg  had  given  up  the  town  of  Spandau 
to  the  king  by  a  former  treaty  to  secure  a  retreat 
for  his  army,  and  the  king  was  advanced  as  far  as 
Frankfort-upon-the-Oder,  when  on  a  sudden  some 
small  difficulties  arising,  Brandenburg  seems  cold  in 
the  matter,  and  with  a  sort  of  indifference  demands 
to  have  his  town  of  Spandau  restored  to  him  again. 
Gustavus  Adolphus,  who  began  presently  to  imagine 
the  duke  had  made  his  peace  with  the  emperor,  and 
so  would  either  be  his  enemy  or  pretend  a  neutrality, 
generously  delivered  him  his  town  of  Spandau,  but 
immediately  turns  about,  and  with  his  whole  army 
besieges  him  in  his  capital  city  of  Berlin.  This 
brought  the  duke  to  know  his  error,  and  by  the 
interpositions  of  the  ladies,  the  Queen  of  Sweden 
being  the  duke's  sister,  the  matter  was  accommodated, 
and  the  duke  joined  his  forces  with  the  king. 

But  the  Duke  of  Saxony  had  like  to  have  been 
undone  by  this  delay,  for  the  Imperialists,  under  Count 
de  Furstenberg,  were  entered  his  country,  and  had 
possessed  themselves  of  Halle,  and  Tilly  was  on  his 
march  to  join  him,  as  he  afterwards  did,  and  ravaging 
the  whole  country  laid  siege  to  Leipsic  itself.  The 
duke  driven  to  this  extremity  rather  flies  to  the  Swede 
than  treats  with  him,  and  on  the  2nd  of  September  the 
duke's  army  joined  with  the  King  of  Sweden. 

I  had  not  come  to  Leipsic  but  to  see  the  Duke 
of  Saxony's  army,  and  that  being  marched,  as  I  have 

D 


50       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

•aid,  for  Torgau,  I  had  no  business  there,  but  if  1 
had,  the  approach  of  Tilly  and  the  Imperial  army 
was  enough  to  hasten  me  away,  for  I  had  no  occasion 
to  be  besieged  there;  so  on  the  2jth  of  August  I  left 
the  town,  as  several  of  the  principal  inhabitants  had 
done  before,  and  more  would  have  done  had  not  the 
governor  published  a  proclamation  against  it,  and 
besides  they  knew  not  whither  to  fly,  for  all  places 
were  alike  exposed.  The  poor  people  were  under 
dreadful  apprehensions  of  a  siege,  and  of  the  merciless 
usage  of  the  Imperial  soldiers,  the  example  of  Magde- 
burg being  fresh  before  them,  the  duke  and  his  army 
gone  from  them,  and  the  town,  though  well  furnished, 
but  indifferently  fortified. 

In  this  condition  I  left  them,  buying  up  stores  of 
provisions,  working  hard  to  scour  their  moats,  set  up 
palisadoes,  repair  their  fortifications,  and  preparing  all 
things  for  a  siege ;  and  following  the  Saxon  army  to 
Torgau,  I  continued  in  the  camp  till  a  few  days  before 
they  joined  the  King  of  Sweden. 

I  had  much  ado  to  persuade  my  companion  from 
entering  into  the  service  of  the  Duke  of  Saxony,  one 
of  whose  colonels,  with  whom  we  had  contracted  a 
particular  acquaintance,  offering  him  a  commission  to 
be  cornet  in  one  of  the  old  regiments  of  horse  ;  but  the 
difference  I  had  observed  between  this  new  army  and 
Tilly's  old  troops  had  made  such  an  impression  on  me, 
that  I  confess  I  had  yet  no  manner  of  inclination  for 
the  service,  and  therefore  persuaded  him  to  wait  a 
while  till  we  had  seen  a  little  further  into  affairs,  and 
particularly  till  we  had  seen  the  Swedish  army  which 
we  had  heard  so  much  of. 

The  difficulties  which  the  Elector-Duke  of  Saxony 
made  of  joining  with  the  king  were  made  up  by  a  treaty 
concluded  with  the  king  on  the  2nd  of  September  at 
Coswig,  a  small  town  on  the  Elbe,  whither  the  king's 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       51 

army  was  arrived  the  night  before ;  for  General  Tilly 
being  now  entered  into  the  duke's  country,  had  plun- 
dered and  ruined  all  the  lower  part  of  it,  and  was  now 
actually  besieging  the  capital  city  of  Leipsic.  These 
necessities  made  almost  any  conditions  easy  to  him  ;  the 
greatest  difficulty  was  that  the  King  of  Sweden  de- 
manded the  absolute  command  of  the  army,  which 
the  duke  submitted  to  with  less  goodwill  than  he 
had  reason  to  do,  the  king's  experience  and  conduct 
considered. 

I  had  not  patience  to  attend  the  conclusions  of  their 
particular  treaties,  but  as  soon  as  ever  the  passage  was 
clear  I  quitted  the  Saxon  camp  and  went  to  see  the 
Swedish  army.  I  fell  in  with  the  out-guards  of  the 
Swedes  at  a  little  town  called  Beltsig,  on  the  river 
Wersa,  just  as  they  were  relieving  the  guards  and 
going  to  march,  and  having  a  pass  from  the  English 
ambassador  was  very  well  received  by  the  officer  who 
changed  the  guards,  and  with  him  I  went  back  into 
the  army.  By  nine  in  the  morning  the  army  was  in  full 
march,  the  king  himself  at  the  head  of  them  on  a  grey 
pad,  and  riding  from  one  brigade  to  another,  ordered 
the  march  of  every  line  himself. 

When  I  saw  the  Swedish  troops,  their  exact  dis- 
cipline, their  order,  the  modesty  and  familiarity  of 
their  officers,  and  the  regular  living  of  the  soldiers, 
their  camp  seemed  a  well-ordered  city ;  the  meanest 
country  woman  with  her  market  ware  was  as  safe  from 
violence  as  in  the  streets  of  Vienna.  There  were  no 
regiments  of  whores  and  rags  as  followed  the  Im- 
perialists ;  nor  any  woman  in  the  camp  but  such  as 
being  known  to  the  provosts  to  be  the  wives  of  the 
soldiers,  who  were  necessary  for  washing  linen,  taking 
care  of  the  soldiers'  clothes,  and  dressing  their  victuals. 

The  soldiers  were  well  clad,  not  gay,  furnished  with 
excellent  arms,  and  exceedingly  careful  of  them  ;  and 


52       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

though  they  did  not  seem  so  terrible  as  I  thought 
Tilly's  men  did  when  I  first  saw  them,  yet  the  figure 
they  made,  together  with  what  we  had  heard  of  them, 
made  them  seem  to  me  invincible :  the  discipline  and 
order  of  their  marchings,  camping,  and  exercise  was 
excellent  and  singular,  and,  which  was  to  be  seen  in 
no  armies  but  the  king's,  his  own  skill,  judgment,  and 
vigilance  having  added  much  to  the  general  conduct  of 
armies  then  in  use. 

As  I  met  the  Swedes  on  their  march  I  had  no 
opportunity  to  acquaint  myself  with  anybody  till  after 
the  conjunction  of  the  Saxon  army,  and  then  it  being 
but  four  days  to  the  great  battle  of  Leipsic,  our  acquaint- 
ance was  but  small,  saving  what  fell  out  accidentally 
by  conversation. 

I  met  with  several  gentlemen  in  the  king's  army 
who  spoke  English  very  well ;  besides  that  there  were 
three  regiments  of  Scots  in  the  army,  the  colonels 
whereof  I  found  were  extraordinarily  esteemed  by  the 
king,  as  the  Lord  Reay,  Colonel  Lumsdell,  and  Sir 
John  Hepburn.  The  latter  of  these,  after  I  had  by 
an  accident  become  acquainted  with,  I  found  had  been 
for  many  years  acquainted  with  my  father,  and  on  that 
account  I  received  a  great  deal  of  civility  from  him, 
which  afterwards  grew  into  a  kind  of  intimate  friend- 
ship. He  was  a  complete  soldier  indeed,  and  for  that 
reason  so  well  beloved  by  that  gallant  king,  that  he 
hardly  knew  how  to  go  about  any  great  action  without 
him. 

It  was  impossible  for  me  now  to  restrain  my  young 
comrade  from  entering  into  the  Swedish  service,  and 
indeed  everything  was  so  inviting  that  I  could  not  blame 
him.  A  captain  in  Sir  John  Hepburn's  regiment  had 
picked  acquaintance  with  him,  and  he  having  as  much 
gallantry  in  his  face  as  real  courage  in  his  heart,  the 
captain  had  persuaded  him  to  take  service,  and  promised 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       53 

to  use  his  interest  to  get  him  a  company  in  the  Scotch 
brigade.  I  had  made  him  promise  me  not  to  part  from 
me  in  my  travels  without  my  consent,  which  was  the 
only  obstacle  to  his  desires  of  entering  into  the  Swedish 
pay ;  and  being  one  evening  in  the  captain's  tent  with 
him  and  discoursing  very  freely  together,  the  captain 
asked  him  very  short  but  friendly,  and  looking  earnestly 
at  me,  "  Is  this  the  gentleman,  Mr  Fielding,  that  has 
done  so  much  prejudice  to  the  King  of  Sweden's  ser- 
vice ? "  I  was  doubly  surprised  at  the  expression,  and 
at  the  colonel,  Sir  John  Hepburn,  coming  at  that  very 
moment  into  the  tent.  The  colonel  hearing  something 
of  the  question,  but  knowing  nothing  of  the  reason  of 
it,  any  more  than  as  I  seemed  a  little  to  concern  my- 
self at  it,  yet  after  the  ceremony  due  to  his  character 
was  over,  would  needs  know  what  I  had  done  to  hinder 
his  Majesty's  service.  "  So  much  truly,"  says  the 
captain,  "  that  if  his  Majesty  knew  it  he  would  think 
himself  very  little  beholden  to  him."  "  I  am  sorry, 
sir,"  said  I,  "  that  I  should  offend  in  anything,  who 
am  but  a  stranger ;  but  if  you  would  please  to  inform 
me,  I  would  endeavour  to  alter  anything  in  my  beha- 
viour that  is  prejudicial  to  any  one,  much  less  to  his 
Majesty's  service."  "  I  shall  take  you  at  your  word, 
sir,"  says  the  captain ;  "  the  King  of  Sweden,  sir,  has 
a  particular  request  to  you."  "  I  should  be  glad  to  know 
two  things,  sir,"  said  I ;  "first,  how  that  can  be  possible, 
since  I  am  not  yet  known  to  any  man  in  the  army, 
much  less  to  his  Majesty  ?  and  secondly,  what  the 
request  can  be  ? "  "  Why,  sir,  his  Majesty  desires  you 
would  not  hinder  this  gentleman  from  entering  into  his 
service,  who  it  seems  desires  nothing  more,  if  he  may 
have  your  consent  to  it."  "  I  have  too  much  honour  for 
his  Majesty,"  returned  I,  "  to  deny  anything  which  he 
pleases  to  command  me  ;  but  methinks  'tis  some  hard- 
ship you  should  make  that  the  king's  order,  which  'tis 


54       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

very  probable  he  knows  nothing  of."  Sir  John  Hepburn 
took  the  case  up  something  gravely,  and  drinking  a  glass 
of  Leipsic  beer  to  the  captain,  said,  "  Come,  captain, 
don't  press  these  gentlemen  ;  the  king  desires  no  man's 
service  but  what  is  purely  volunteer."  So  we  entered 
into  other  discourse,  and  the  colonel  perceiving  by  my 
talk  that  I  had  seen  Tilly's  army,  was  mighty  curious 
in  his  questions,  and  seeming  very  well  satisfied  with 
the  account  I  gave  him. 

The  next  day  the  army  having  passed  the  Elbe  at 
Wittenberg,  and  joined  the  Saxon  army  near  Torgau, 
his  Majesty  caused  both  armies  to  draw  up  in  battalia, 
giving  every  brigade  the  same  post  in  the  lines  as  he 
purposed  to  fight  in.  I  must  do  the  memory  of  that 
glorious  general  this  honour,  that  I  never  saw  an 
army  drawn  up  with  so  much  variety,  order,  and 
exact  regularity  since,  though  I  have  seen  many 
armies  drawn  up  by  some  of  the  greatest  captains  of 
the  age.  The  order  by  which  his  men  were  directed 
to  flank  and  relieve  one  another,  the  methods  of  re- 
ceiving one  body  of  men  if  disordered  into  another, 
and  rallying  one  squadron  without  disordering  another 
was  so  admirable ;  the  horse  everywhere  flanked,  lined 
and  defended  by  the  foot,  and  the  foot  by  the  horse, 
and  both  by  the  cannon,  was  such,  that  if  those  orders 
were  but  as  punctually  obeyed,  'twere  impossible  to  put 
an  army  so  modelled  into  any  confusion. 

The  view  being  over,  and  the  troops  returned  to 
their  camps,  the  captain  with  whom  we  drank  the  day 
before  meeting  me  told  me  I  must  come  and  sup  with 
him  in  his  tent,  where  he  would  ask  my  pardon  for  the 
affront  he  gave  me  before.  I  told  him  he  needed  not 
put  himself  to  the  trouble,  I  was  not  affronted  at  all ; 
that  I  would  do  myself  the  honour  to  wait  on  him, 
provided  he  would  give  me  his  word  not  to  speak  any 
more  of  it  as  an  affront. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       55 

We  had  not  been  a  quarter  of  an  hour  in  his  tent  but 
Sir  John  Hepburn  came  in  again,  and  addressing  to 
me,  told  me  he  was  glad  to  find  me  there ;  that  he 
came  to  the  captain's  tent  to  inquire  how  to  send  to  me ; 
and  that  I  must  do  him  the  honour  to  go  with  him 
to  wait  on  the  king,  who  had  a  mind  to  hear  the 
account  I  could  give  him  of  the  Imperial  army  from 
my  own  mouth.  I  must  confess  I  was  at  some  loss  in 
my  mind  how  to  make  my  address  to  his  Majesty,  but 
I  had  heard  so  much  of  the  conversable  temper  of  the 
king,  and  his  particular  sweetness  of  humour  with  the 
meanest  soldier,  that  I  made  no  more  difficulty,  but 
having  paid  my  respects  to  Colonel  Hepburn,  thanked 
him  for  the  honour  he  had  done  me,  and  offered  to 
rise  and  wait  upon  him.  "  Nay,"  says  the  colonel, 
"  we  will  eat  first,  for  I  find  Gourdon,"  which  was  the 
captain's  name,  "  has  got  something  for  supper,  and  the 
king's  order  is  at  seven  o'clock."  So  we  went  to 
supper,  and  Sir  John,  becoming  very  friendly,  must 
know  my  name ;  which,  when  I  had  told  him,  and 
of  what  place  and  family,  he  rose  from  his  seat,  and 
embracing  me,  told  me  he  knew  my  father  very  well, 
and  had  been  intimately  acquainted  with  him,  and  told 
me  several  passages  wherein  my  father  had  particularly 
obliged  him.  After  this  we  went  to  supper,  and  the 
king's  health  being  drank  round,  the  colonel  moved  the 
sooner  because  he  had  a  mind  to  talk  with  me. 

When  we  were  going  to  the  king  he  inquired  of 
me  where  I  had  been,  and  what  occasion  brought  me 
to  the  army.  I  told  him  the  short  history  of  my 
travels,  and  that  I  came  hither  from  Vienna  on  purpose 
to  see  the  King  of  Sweden  and  his  army.  He  asked 
me  if  there  was  any  service  he  could  do  me,  by  which 
he  meant,  whether  I  desired  an  employment.  I  pre- 
tended not  to  take  him  so,  but  told  him  the  protection 
his  acquaintance  would  afford  me  was  more  than  I 


56       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

could  have  asked,  since  I  might  thereby  have  oppor- 
tunity to  satisfy  my  curiosity,  which  was  the  chief  end 
of  my  coming  abroad.  He  perceiving  by  this  that  I 
had  no  mind  to  be  a  soldier,  told  me  very  kindly  I 
should  command  him  in  anything ;  that  his  tent  and 
equipage,  horses  and  servants  should  always  have 
orders  to  be  at  my  service ;  but  that  as  a  piece  of 
friendship,  he  would  advise  me  to  retire  to  some  place 
distant  from  the  army,  for  that  the  army  would  march 
to-morrow,  and  the  king  was  resolved  to  fight  General 
Tilly,  and  he  would  not  have  me  hazard  myself;  that 
if  I  thought  fit  to  take  his  advice,  he  would  have  me 
take  that  interval  to  see  the  court  at  Berlin,  whither  he 
would  send  one  of  his  servants  to  wait  on  me. 

His  discourse  was  too  kind  not  to  extort  the  tenderest 
acknowledgment  from  me  that  I  was  capable  of.  I 
told  him  his  care  of  me  was  so  obliging,  that  I  knew 
not  what  return  to  make  him,  but  if  he  pleased  to  leave 
me  to  my  choice  I  desired  no  greater  favour  than  to 
trail  a  pike  under  his  command  in  the  ensuing  battle. 
"  I  can  never  answer  it  to  your  father,"  says  he,  "  to 
suffer  you  to  expose  yourself  so  far."  I  told  him  my 
father  would  certainly  acknowledge  his  friendship  in  the 
proposal  made  me ;  but  I  believed  he  knew  him  better 
than  to  think  he  would  be  well  pleased  with  me  if  I 
should  accept  of  it ;  that  I  was  sure  my  father  would 
have  rode  post  five  hundred  miles  to  have  been  at  such 
a  battle  under  such  a  general,  and  it  should  never  be 
told  him  that  his  son  had  rode  fifty  miles  to  be  out  of  it- 
He  seemed  to  be  something  concerned  at  the  resolution  I 
had  taken,  and  replied  very  quickly  upon  me,  that  he 
approved  very  well  of  my  courage ;  "  but,"  says  he,  "  no 
man  gets  any  credit  by  running  upon  needless  adven- 
tures, nor  loses  any  by  shunning  hazards  which  he  has  no 
order  for.  'Tis  enough,"  says  he,  "for  a  gentleman  to 
behave  well  when  he  is  commanded  upon  any  service ; 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       57 

I  have  had  fighting  enough,"  says  he,  "  upon  these 
points  of  honour,  and  I  never  got  anything  but  reproof 
for  it  from  the  king  himself." 

"  Well,  sir,"  said  I,  "  however,  if  a  man  expects  to 
rise  by  his  valour,  he  must  show  it  somewhere ;  and  if 
I  were  to  have  any  command  in  an  army,  I  would  first 
try  whether  I  could  deserve  it.  I  have  never  yet  seen 
any  service,  and  must  have  my  induction  some  time  or 
other.  I  shall  never  have  a  better  schoolmaster  than  your- 
self, nor  a  better  school  than  such  an  army."  "Well," 
says  Sir  John,  "but  you  may  have  the  same  school  and 
the  same  teaching  after  this  battle  is  over ;  for  I  must 
tell  you  beforehand,  this  will  be  a  bloody  touch.  Tilly 
has  a  great  army  of  old  lads  that  are  used  to  boxing, 
fellows  with  iron  faces,  and  'tis  a  little  too  much  to 
engage  so  hotly  the  first  entrance  into  the  wars.  You 
may  see  our  discipline  this  winter,  and  make  your 
campaign  with  us  next  summer,  when  you  need  not 
fear  but  we  shall  have  fighting  enough,  and  you  will  be 
better  acquainted  with  things.  We  do  never  put  our 
common  soldiers  upon  pitched  battles  the  first  campaign, 
but  place  our  new  men  in  garrisons  and  try  them  in 
parties  first."  "  Sir,"  said  I,  with  a  little  more  freedom, 
"  I  believe  I  shall  not  make  a  trade  of  the  war,  and 
therefore  need  not  serve  an  apprenticeship  to  it :  'tis  a 
hard  battle  where  none  escapes.  If  I  come  off,  I  hope 
I  shall  not  disgrace  you,  and  if  not,  'twill  be  some 
satisfaction  to  my  father  to  hear  his  son  died  fighting 
under  the  command  of  Sir  John  Hepburn,  in  the  army 
of  the  King  of  Sweden,  and  I  desire  no  better  epitaph 
upon  my  tomb." 

"Well,"  says  Sir  John,  and  by  this  time  we  were  just 
come  to  the  king's  quarters,  and  the  guards  calling  to 
us  interrupted  his  reply ;  so  we  went  into  the  courtyard 
where  the  king  was  lodged,  which  was  in  an  indifferent 
house  of  one  of  the  burghers  of  Debien,  and  Sir  John 


58       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

stepping  up,  met  the  king  coming  down  some  steps  into 
a  large  room  which  looked  over  the  town  wall  into 
a  field  where  part  of  the  artillery  was  drawn  up.  Sir 
John  Hepburn  sent  his  man  presently  to  me  to  come 
up,  which  I  did ;  and  Sir  John  without  any  ceremony 
carries  me  directly  up  to  the  king,  who  was  leaning 
on  his  elbow  in  the  window.  The  king  turning  about, 
"This  is  the  English  gentleman,"  says  Sir  John,  "who 
I  told  your  Majesty  had  been  in  the  Imperial  army." 
"How  then  did  he  get  hither,"  says  the  king,  "with- 
out being  taken  by  the  scouts  ? "  At  which  question, 
Sir  John  saying  nothing,  "  By  a  pass,  and  please  your 
Majesty,  from  the  English  ambassador's  secretary  at 
Vienna,"  said  I,  making  a  profound  reverence.  "  Have 
you  then  been  at  Vienna  ?  "  says  the  king.  "  Yes,  and 
please  your  Majesty,"  said  I ;  upon  which  the  king, 
folding  up  a  letter  he  had  in  his  hand,  seemed  much 
more  earnest  to  talk  about  Vienna  than  about  Tilly. 
"And,  pray,  what  news  had  you  at  Vienna  ?"  "  No- 
thing, sir,"  said  I,  "  but  daily  accounts  one  in  the 
neck  of  another  of  their  own  misfortunes,  and  your 
Majesty's  conquests,  which  makes  a  very  melancholy 
court  there."  "  But,  pray,"  said  the  king,  "  what  is  the 
common  opinion  there  about  these  affairs ?"  "The 
common  people  are  terrified  to  the  last  degree,"  said  I, 
"  and  when  your  Majesty  took  Frankfort-upon-Oder, 
if  your  army  had  marched  but  twenty  miles  into  Silesia, 
half  the  people  would  have  run  out  of  Vienna,  and  I 
left  them  fortifying  the  city."  "  They  need  not,"  re- 
plied the  king,  smiling ;  "  I  have  no  design  to  trouble 
them,  it  is  the  Protestant  countries  I  must  be  for." 

Upon  this  the  Duke  of  Saxony  entered  the  room, 
and  finding  the  king  engaged,  offered  to  retire ;  but 
the  king,  beckoning  with  his  hand,  called  to  him  in 
French :  "  Cousin,"  says  the  king,  "  this  gentleman 
has  been  travelling  and  comes  from  Vienna,"  and  so 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       59 

made  me  repeat  what  I  had  said  before ;  at  which 
the  king  went  on  with  me,  and  Sir  John  Hepburn 
informing  his  Majesty  that  I  spoke  High  Dutch,  he 
changed  his  language,  and  asked  me  in  Dutch  where 
it  was  that  I  saw  General  Tilly's  army.  I  told  his 
Majesty  at  the  siege  of  Magdeburg.  "  At  Mag- 
deburg !  "  said  the  king,  shaking  his  head ;  "  Tilly 
must  answer  to  me  one  day  for  that  city,  and  if  not  to 
me,  to  a  greater  King  than  I.  Can  you  guess  what 
army  he  had  with  him  ? "  said  the  king.  "  He  had 
two  armies  with  him,"  said  I,  "but  one  I  suppose 
will  do  your  Majesty  no  harm."  "  Two  armies !  " 
said  the  king.  "  Yes,  sir,  he  has  one  army  of  about 
26,000  men,"  said  I,  "and  another  of  above  15,000 
whores  and  their  attendants,"  at  which  the  king  laughed 
heartily.  "Ay,  ay,"  says  the  king,  "those  15,000 
do  us  as  much  harm  as  the  26,000,  for  they  eat  up  the 
country,  and  devour  the  poor  Protestants  more  than 
the  men.  Well,"  says  the  king,  "  do  they  talk  of 
fighting  us  ? "  "  They  talk  big  enough,  sir,"  said  I, 
"  but  your  Majesty  has  not  been  so  often  fought  with  as 
beaten  in  their  discourse."  "  I  know  not  for  the  men," 
says  the  king, "  but  the  old  man  is  as  likely  to  do  it  as 
talk  of  it,  and  I  hope  to  try  them  in  a  day  or  two." 

The  king  inquired  after  that  several  matters  of  me 
about  the  Low  Countries,  the  Prince  of  Orange,  and 
of  the  court  and  affairs  in  England ;  and  Sir  John 
Hepburn  informing  his  Majesty  that  I  was  the  son 
of  an  English  gentleman  of  his  acquaintance,  the  king 
had  the  goodness  to  ask  him  what  care  he  had  taken  of 
me  against  the  day  of  battle.  Upon  which  Sir  John 
repeated  to  him  the  discourse  we  had  together  by  the 
way ;  the  king  seeming  particularly  pleased  with  it, 
began  to  take  me  to  task  himself.  "You  English 
gentlemen,"  says  he,  "  are  too  forward  in  the  wars, 
which  makes  you  leave  them  too  soon  again."  "  Your 


60       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Majesty,"  replied  I,  "makes  war  in  so  pleasant  a 
manner  as  makes  all  the  world  fond  of  fighting  under 
your  conduct."  "Not  so  pleasant  neither,"  says  the 
king,  "here's  a  man  can  tell  you  that  sometimes  it 
is  not  very  pleasant."  "  I  know  not  much  of  the 
warrior,  sir,"  said  I,  "  nor  of  the  world,  but  if  always 
to  conquer  be  the  pleasure  of  the  war,  your  Majesty's 
soldiers  have  all  that  can  be  desired."  "Well,"  says 
the  king,  "  but  however,  considering  all  things,  I  think 
you  would  do  well  to  take  the  advice  Sir  John  Hepburn 
has  given  you."  "  Your  Majesty  may  command  me  to 
anything,  but  where  your  Majesty  and  so  many  gallant 
gentlemen  hazard  their  lives,  mine  is  not  worth  men- 
tioning ;  and  I  should  not  dare  to  tell  my  father  at  my 
return  into  England  that  I  was  in  your  Majesty's  army, 
and  made  so  mean  a  figure  that  your  Majesty  would 
not  permit  me  to  fight  under  that  royal  standard." 
"  Nay,"  replied  the  king,  "  I  lay  no  commands  upon 
you,  but  you  are  young."  "  I  can  never  die,  sir," 
said  I,  "  with  more  honour  than  in  your  Majesty's 
service."  I  spake  this  with  so  much  freedom,  and 
his  Majesty  was  so  pleased  with  it,  that  he  asked  me 
how  I  would  choose  to  serve,  on  horseSack  or  on  foot. 
I  told  his  Majesty  I  should  be  glad  to  receive  any  of 
his  Majesty's  commands,  but  if  I  had  not  that  honour  I 
had  purposed  to  trail  a  pike  under  Sir  John  Hepburn, 
who  had  done  me  so  much  honour  as  to  introduce  me 
into  his  Majesty's  presence.  "  Do  so,  then,"  replied 
the  king,  and  turning  to  Sir  John  Hepburn,  said,  "and, 
pray,  do  you  take  care  of  him."  At  which,  overcome 
with  the  goodness  of  his  discourse,  I  could  not  answer 
a  word,  but  made  him  a  profound  reverence  and 
retired. 

The  next  day  but  one,  being  the  yth  of  Septem- 
ber, before  day  the  army  marched  from  Dieben  to  a 
large  field  about  a  mile  from  Leipsic,  where  we 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       61 

found  Tilly's  army  in  full  battalia  in  admirable  order, 
which  made  a  show  both  glorious  and  terrible.  Tilly, 
like  a  fair  gamester,  had  taken  up  but  one  side  of 
the  plain,  and  left  the  other  free,  and  all  the  avenues 
open  for  the  king's  army ;  nor  did  he  stir  to  the 
charge  till  the  king's  army  was  completely  drawn 
up  and  advanced  toward  him.  He  had  in  his  army 
44,000  old  soldiers,  every  way  answerable  to  what  I 
have  said  of  them  before  ;  and  I  shall  only  add,  a 
better  army,  I  believe,  never  was  so  soundly  beaten. 

The  king  was  not  much  inferior  in  force,  being 
joined  with  the  Saxons,  who  were  reckoned  22,000 
men,  and  who  drew  up  on  the  left,  making  a  main 
battle  and  two  wings,  as  the  king  did  on  the  right. 

The  king  placed  himself  at  the  right  wing  of  his 
own  horse,  Gustavus  Horn  had  the  main  battle  of 
the  Swedes,  the  Duke  of  Saxony  had  the  main  battle 
of  his  own  troops,  and  General  Arnheim  the  right 
wing  of  his  horse.  The  second  line  of  the  Swedes 
consisted  of  the  two  Scotch  brigades,  and  three 
Swedish,  with  the  Finland  horse  in  the  wings. 

In  the  beginning  of  the  fight,  Tilly's  right  wing 
charged  with  such  irresistible  fury  upon  the  left  of 
the  king's  army  where  the  Saxons  were  posted,  that 
nothing  could  withstand  them.  The  Saxons  fled  amain, 
and  some  of  them  carried  the  news  over  the  country 
that  all  *was  lost,  and  the  king's  army  overthrown  ; 
and  indeed  it  passed  for  an  oversight  with  some  that 
the  king  did  not  place  some  of  his  old  troops  among 
the  Saxons,  who  were  new-raised  men.  The  Saxons 
lost  here  near  2000  men,  and  hardly  ever  showed 
their  faces  again  all  the  battle,  except  some  few  of 
their  horse. 

I  was  posted  with  my  comrade,  the  captain,  at  the 
head  of  three  Scottish  regiments  of  foot,  commanded 
by  Sir  John  Hepburn,  with  express  directions  from 


62       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

the  colonel  to  keep  by  him.  Our  post  was  in  the 
second  line,  as  a  reserve  to  the  King  of  Sweden's 
main  battle,  and,  which  was  strange,  the  main  battle, 
which  consisted  of  four  great  brigades  of  foot,  were 
never  charged  during  the  whole  fight ;  and  yet  we, 
who  had  the  reserve,  were  obliged  to  endure  the  whole 
weight  of  the  Imperial  army.  The  occasion  was,  the 
right  wing  of  the  Imperialists  having  defeated  the 
Saxons,  and  being  eager  in  the  chase,  Tilly,  who  was 
an  old  soldier,  and  ready  to  prevent  all  mistakes,  for- 
bids any  pursuit.  "Let  them  go,"  says  he,  "but  let 
us  beat  the  Swedes,  or  we  do  nothing."  Upon  this  the 
victorious  troops  fell  in  upon  the  flank  of  the  king's 
army,  which,  the  Saxons  being  fled,  lay  open  to  them. 
Gustavus  Horn  commanded  the  left  wing  of  the 
Swedes,  and  having  first  defeated  some  regiments 
which  charged  him,  falls  in  upon  the  rear  of  the  Im- 
perial right  wing,  and  separates  them  from  the  van, 
who  were  advanced  a  great  way  forward  in  pursuit 
of  the  Saxons,  and  having  routed  the  said  rear  or 
reserve,  falls  on  upon  Tilly's  main  battle,  and  defeated 
part  of  them  ;  the  other  part  was  gone  in  chase  of  the 
Saxons,  and  now  also  returned,  fell  in  upon  the  rear 
of  the  left  wing  of  the  Swedes,  charging  them  in  the 
flank,  for  they  drew  up  upon  the  very  ground  which 
the  Saxons  had  quitted.  This  changed  the  whole 
front,  and  made  the  Swedes  face  about  to  the  left,  and 
make  a  great  front  on  their  flank  to  make  this  good. 
Our  brigades,  who  were  placed  as  a  reserve  for  the 
main  battle,  were,  by  special  order  from  the  king, 
wheeled  about  to  the  left,  and  placed  for  the  right  of 
this  new  front  to  charge  the  Imperialists ;  they  were 
about  12,000  of  their  best  foot,  besides  horse,  and, 
flushed  with  the  execution  of  the  Saxons,  fell  on  like 
furies.  The  king  by  this  time  had  almost  defeated  the 
Imperialists'  left  wing ;  their  horse,  with  more  haste  than 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       63 

good  speed,  had  charged  faster  than  their  foot  could 
follow,  and  having  broke  into  the  king's  first  line,  he 
let  them  go,  where,  while  the  second  line  bears  the 
shock,  and  bravely  resisted  them,  the  king  follows 
them  on  the  crupper  with  thirteen  troops  of  horse,  and 
some  musketeers,  by  which  being  hemmed  in,  they 
were  all  cut  down  in  a  moment  as  it  were,  and  the 
army  never  disordered  with  them.  This  fatal  blow  to 
the  left  wing  gave  the  king  more  leisure  to  defeat  the 
foot  which  followed,  and  to  send  some  assistance  to 
Gustavus  Horn  in  his  left  wing,  who  had  his  hands 
full  with  the  main  battle  of  the  Imperialists. 

But  those  troops  who,  as  I  said,  had  routed  the 
Saxons,  being  called  off  from  the  pursuit,  had  charged 
our  flank,  and  were  now  grown  very  strong,  renewed 
the  battle  in  a  terrible  manner.  Here  it  was  I  saw 
our  men  go  to  wreck.  Colonel  Hall,  a  brave  soldier, 
commanded  the  rear  of  the  Swedes'  left  wing ;  he 
fought  like  a  lion,  but  was  slain,  and  most  of  his  regi- 
ment cut  off,  though  not  unrevenged,  for  they  entirely 
ruined  Furstenberg's  regiment  of  foot.  Colonel  Cul- 
lembach,  with  his  regiment  of  horse,  was  extremely 
overlaid  also,  and  the  colonel  and  many  brave  officers 
killed,  and  in  short  all  that  wing  was  shattered,  and  in 
an  ill  condition. 

In  this  juncture  came  the  king,  and  having  seen 
what  havoc  the  enemy  made  of  Cullembach's  troops, 
he  comes  riding  along  the  front  of  our  three  brigades, 
and  himself  led  us  on  to  the  charge  ;  the  colonel  of  his 
guards,  the  Baron  Dyvel,  was  shot  dead  just  as  the 
king  had  given  him  some  orders.  When  the  Scots 
advanced,  seconded  by  some  regiments  of  horse  which 
the  king  also  sent  to  the  charge,  the  bloodiest  fight 
began  that  ever  men  beheld,  for  the  Scottish  brigades, 
giving  fire  three  ranks  at  a  time  over  one  another's 
heads,  poured  in  their  shot  so  thick,  that  the  enemy 


64       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

were  cut  down  like  grass  before  a  scythe  ;  and  following 
into  the  thickest  of  their  foot  with  the  clubs  of  their 
muskets  made  a  most  dreadful  slaughter,  and  yet  was 
there  no  flying.  Tilly's  men  might  be  killed  and  knocked 
down,  but  no  man  turned  his  back,  nor  would  give  an 
inch  of  ground,  but  as  they  were  wheeled,  or  marched, 
or  retreated  by  their  officers. 

There  was  a  regiment  of  cuirassiers  which  stood 
whole  to  the  last,  and  fought  like  lions  ;  they  went 
ranging  over  the  field  when  all  their  army  was  broken, 
and  nobody  cared  for  charging  them ;  they  were  com- 
manded by  Baron  Kronenburg,  and  at  last  went  off 
from  the  battle  whole.  These  were  armed  in  black 
armour  from  head  to  foot,  and  they  carried  off  their 
general.  About  six  o'clock  the  field  was  cleared  of 
the  enemy,  except  at  one  place  on  the  king's  side, 
where  some  of  them  rallied,  and  though  they  knew 
all  was  lost  would  take  no  quarter,  but  fought  it  out  to 
the  last  man,  being  found  dead  the  next  day  in  rank 
and  file  as  they  were  drawn  up. 

I  had  the  good  fortune  to  receive  no  hurt  in  this 
battle,  excepting  a  small  scratch  on  the  side  of  my 
neck  by  the  push  of  a  pike ;  but  my  friend  received  a 
very  dangerous  wound  when  the  battle  was  as  good 
as  over.  He  had  engaged  with  a  German  colonel, 
whose  name  we  could  never  learn,  and  having  killed 
his  man,  and  pressed  very  close  upon  him,  so  that  he 
had  shot  his  horse,  the  horse  in  the  fall  kept  the 
colonel  down,  lying  on  one  of  his  legs ;  upon  which  he 
demanded  quarter,  which  Captain  Fielding  granting, 
helped  him  to  quit  his  horse,  and  having  disarmed  him, 
was  bringing  him  into  the  line,  when  the  regiment  of 
cuirassiers,  which  I  mentioned,  commanded  by  Baron 
Kronenburg,  came  roving  over  the  field,  and  with  a 
flying  charge  saluted  our  front  with  a  salvo  of  carbine 
shot,  which  wounded  us  a  great  many  men,  and  among 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       65 

the  rest  the  captain  received  a  shot  in  his  thigh,  which 
laid  him  on  the  ground,  and  being  separated  from  the 
line,  his  prisoner  got  away  with  them. 

This  was  the  first  service  I  was  in,  and  indeed  I 
never  saw  any  fight  since  maintained  with  such  gallantry, 
such  desperate  valour,  together  with  such  dexterity  of 
management,  both  sides  being  composed  of  soldiers 
fully  tried,  bred  to  the  wars,  expert  in  everything, 
exact  in  their  order,  and  incapable  of  fear,  which  made 
the  battle  be  much  more  bloody  than  usual.  Sir  John 
Hepburn,  at  my  request,  took  particular  care  of  my 
comrade,  and  sent  his  own  surgeon  to  look  after  him  ; 
and  afterwards,  when  the  city  of  Leipsic  was  retaken, 
provided  him  lodgings  there,  and  came  very  often 
to  see  him ;  and  indeed  I  was  in  great  care  for  him 
too,  the  surgeons  being  very  doubtful  of  him  a  great 
while ;  for  having  lain  in  the  field  all  night  among  the 
dead,  his  wound,  for  want  of  dressing,  and  with  the 
extremity  of  cold,  was  in  a  very  ill  condition,  and  the 
pain  of  it  had  thrown  him  into  a  fever.  'Twas  quite 
dusk  before  the  fight  ended,  especially  where  the  last 
rallied  troops  fought  so  long,  and  therefore  we  durst 
not  break  our  order  to  seek  out  our  friends,  so  that 
'twas  near  seven  o'clock  the  next  morning  before  we 
found  the  captain,  who,  though  very  weak  by  the  loss 
of  blood,  had  raised  himself  up,  and  placed  his  back 
against  the  buttock  of  a  dead  horse.  I  was  the  first 
that  knew  him,  and  running  to  him,  embraced  him  with 
a  great  deal  of  joy ;  he  was  not  able  to  speak,  but 
made  signs  to  let  me  see  he  knew  me,  so  we  brought 
him  into  the  camp,  and  Sir  John  Hepburn,  as  I  noted 
before,  sent  his  own  surgeons  to  look  after  him. 

The  darkness  of  the  night  prevented  any  pursuit, 
and  was  the  only  refuge  the  enemy  had  left ;  for  had 
there  been  three  hours  more  daylight  ten  thousand 
more  lives  had  been  lost,  for  the  Swedes  (and  Saxons 

£ 


66       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

especially)  enraged  by  the  obstinacy  of  the  enemy, 
were  so  thoroughly  heated  that  they  would  have  given 
quarter  but  to  few.  The  retreat  was  not  sounded  till 
seven  o'clock,  when  the  king  drew  up  the  whole  army 
upon  the  field  of  battle,  and  gave  strict  command  that 
none  should  stir  from  their  order ;  so  the  army 
lay  under  their  arms  all  night,  which  was  another 
reason  why  the  wounded  soldiers  suffered  very  much 
by  the  cold  ;  for  the  king,  who  had  a  bold  enemy  to 
deal  with,  was  not  ignorant  what  a  small  body  of  despe- 
rate men  rallied  together  might  have  done  in  the  dark- 
ness of  the  night,  and  therefore  he  lay  in  his  coach 
all  night  at  the  head  of  the  line,  though  it  froze  very 
hard. 

As  soon  as  the  day  began  to  peep  the  trumpets 
sounded  to  horse,  and  all  the  dragoons  and  light-horse 
in  the  army  were  commanded  to  the  pursuit.  The 
cuirassiers  and  some  commanded  musketeers  advanced 
some  miles,  if  need  were,  to  make  good  their  retreat, 
and  all  the  foot  stood  to  their  arms  for  a  reserve ;  but 
in  half-an-hour  word  was  brought  to  the  king  that  the 
enemy  were  quite  dispersed,  upon  which  detachments 
were  made  out  of  every  regiment  to  search  among  the 
dead  for  any  of  our  friends  that  were  wounded ;  and 
the  king  himself  gave  a  strict  order,  that  if  any  were 
found  wounded  and  alive  among  the  enemy  none  should 
kill  them,  but  take  care  to  bring  them  into  the  camp — 
a  piece  of  humanity  which  saved  the  lives  of  near  a 
thousand  of  the  enemies. 

This  piece  of  service  being  over,  the  enemy's  camp 
was  seized  upon,  and  the  soldiers  were  permitted  to 
plunder  it ;  all  the  cannon,  arms,  and  ammunition  was 
secured  for  the  king's  use,  the  rest  was  given  up  to  the 
soldiers,  who  found  so  much  plunder  that  they  had  no 
reason  to  quarrel  for  shares. 

For  my  share,  I  was  so  busy  with   my  wounded 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       67 

captain  that  I  got  nothing  but  a  sword,  which  I  found 
just  by  him  when  I  first  saw  him  ;  but  my  man  brought 
me  a  very  good  horse  with  a  furniture  on  him,  and  one 
pistol  of  extraordinary  workmanship. 

I  bade  him  get  upon  his  back  and  make  the  best  of 
the  day  for  himself,  which  he  did,  and  I  saw  him  no 
more  till  three  days  after,  when  he  found  me  out  at 
Leipsic,  so  richly  dressed  that  I  hardly  knew  him ; 
and  after  making  his  excuse  for  his  long  absence,  gave 
me  a  very  pleasant  account  where  he  had  been.  He 
told  me  that,  according  to  my  order,  being  mounted  on 
the  horse  he  had  brought  me,  he  first  rid  into  the  field 
among  the  dead  to  get  some  clothes  suitable  to  the 
equipage  of  his  horse,  and  having  seized  on  a  laced 
coat,  a  helmet,  a  sword,  and  an  extraordinary  good 
cane,  was  resolved  to  see  what  was  become  of  the 
enemy  ;  and  following  the  track  of  the  dragoons,  which 
he  could  easily  do  by  the  bodies  on  the  road,  he  fell 
in  with  a  small  party  of  twenty-five  dragoons,  under 
no  command  but  a  corporal,  making  to  a  village  where 
some  of  the  enemies'  hcrse  had  been  quartered.  The 
dragoons,  taking  him  for  an  officer  by  his  horse,  desired 
him  to  command  them,  told  him  the  enemy  was  very 
rich,  and  they  doubted  not  a  good  booty.  He  was 
a  bold,  brisk  fellow,  and  told  them,  with  all  his  heart, 
but  said  he  had  but  one  pistol,  the  other  being  broken 
with  firing ;  so  they  lent  him  a  pair  of  pistols,  and  a 
small  piece  they  had  taken,  and  he  led  them  on. 
There  had  been  a  regiment  of  horse  and  some  troops 
of  Crabats  in  the  village,  but  they  were  fled  on  the  first 
notice  of  the  pursuit,  excepting  three  troops,  and  these, 
on  sight  of  this  small  party,  supposing  them  to  be  only 
the  first  of  a  greater  number,  fled  in  the  greatest  con- 
fusion imaginable.  They  took  the  village,  and  about 
fifty  horses,  with  all  the  plunder  of  the  enemy,  and 
with  the  heat  of  the  service  he  had  spoiled  my  horse, 


68       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

he  said,  for  which  he  had  brought  me  two  more ;  for 
he,  passing  for  the  commander  of  the  party,  had  all  the 
advantage  the  custom  of  war  gives  an  officer  in  like 
cases. 

I  was  very  well  pleased  with  the  relation  the  fellow 
gave  me,  and,  laughing  at  him,  "Well,  captain,"  said  I, 
"and  what  plunder  have  ye  got?"  "Enough  to  make 
me  a  captain,  sir,"  says  he,  "if  you  please,  and  a  troop 
ready  raised  too  ;  for  the  party  of  dragoons  are  posted 
in  the  village  by  my  command,  till  they  have  farther 
orders."  In  short,  he  pulled  out  sixty  or  seventy  pieces 
of  gold,  five  or  six  watches,  thirteen  or  fourteen  rings, 
whereof  two  were  diamond  rings,  one  of  which  was 
worth  fifty  dollars,  silver  as  much  as  his  pockets  would 
hold  ;  besides  that  he  had  brought  three  horses,  two  of 
which  were  laden  with  baggage,  and  a  boor  he  had  hired 
to  stay  with  them  at  Leipsic  till  he  had  found  me  out. 
"  But  I  am  afraid, captain,"  says  I,  "you  have  plundered 
the  village  instead  of  plundering  the  enemy."  "  No 
indeed,  not  we,"  says  he,  "  but  the  Crabats  had  done 
it  for  us,  and  we  light  of  them  just  as  they  were 
carrying  it  of."  "Well,"  said  I,  "but  what  will 
you  do  with  your  men,  for  when  you  come  to  give 
them  orders  they  will  know  you  well  enough?" 
"  No,  no,"  says  he,  "  I  took  care  of  that,  for  just 
now  I  gave  a  soldier  five  dollars  to  carry  them  news 
that  the  army  was  marched  to  Merseburg,  and  that 
they  should  follow  thither  to  the  regiment." 

Having  secured  his  money  in  my  lodgings,  he  asked 
me  if  I  pleased  to  see  his  horses,  and  to  have  one  for 
myself?  I  told  him  I  would  go  and  see  them  in 
the  afternoon ;  but  the  fellow  being  impatient  goes  and 
fetches  them.  There  was  three  horses,  one  whereof 
was  a  very  good  one,  and  by  the  furniture  was  an 
officer's  horse  of  the  Crabats,  and  that  my  man  would 
have  me  accept,  for  the  other  he  had  spoiled,  as  he 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       69 

said.  I  was  but  indifferently  horsed  before,  so  I 
accepted  of  the  horse,  and  went  down  with  him  to 
see  the  rest  of  his  plunder  there.  He  had  got  three 
or  four  pair  of  pistols,  two  or  three  bundles  of  officers' 
linen,  and  lace,  a  field-bed,  and  a  tent,  and  several  other 
things  of  value ;  but  at  last,  coming  to  a  small  fardel, 
"And  this,"  says  he,  "I  took  whole  from  a  Crabat 
running  away  with  it  under  his  arm,"  so  he  brought  it 
up  into  my  chamber.  He  had  not  looked  into  it,  he 
said,  but  he  understood  'twas  some  plunder  the  soldiers 
had  made,  and  finding  it  heavy  took  it  by  consent. 
We  opened  it  and  found  it  was  a  bundle  of  some  linen, 
thirteen  or  fourteen  pieces  of  plate,  and  in  a  small  cup, 
three  rings,  a  fine  necklace  of  pearl,  and  the  value  of 
100  rix-dollars  in  money. 

The  fellow  was  amazed  at  his  own  good  fortune, 
and  hardly  knew  what  to  do  with  himself;  I  bid  him 
go  take  care  of  his  other  things,  and  of  his  horses,  and 
come  again.  So  he  went  and  discharged  the  boor  that 
waited  and  packed  up  all  his  plunder,  and  came  up  to 
me  in  his  old  clothes  again.  "How  now,  captain,"  says 
I,  "  what,  have  you  altered  your  equipage  already  ? "  "I 
am  no  more  ashamed,  sir,  of  your  livery,"  answered  he, 
"than  of  your  service,  and  nevertheless  your  servant  for 
what  I  have  got  by  it."  "  Well,"  says  I  to  him,  "but 
what  will  you  do  now  with  all  your  money?"  " I  wish 
my  poor  father  had  some  of  it,"  says  he,  "and  for  the 
rest  I  got  it  for  you,  sir,  and  desire  you  would  take  it." 
He  spoke  it  with  so  much  honesty  and  freedom  that  I 
could  not  but  take  it  very  kindly ;  but,  however,  I  told 
him  I  would  not  take  a  farthing  from  him  as  his  master, 
but  I  would  have  him  play  the  good  husband  with  it, 
now  he  had  such  good  fortune  to  get  it.  He  told  me  he 
would  take  my  directions  in  everything.  "Why, then," 
said  I,  "  I'll  tell  you  what  I  would  advise  you  to  do, 
turn  it  all  into  ready  money,  and  convey  it  by  return 


yo       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

home  into  England,  and  follow  yourself  the  first  oppor- 
tunity, and  with  good  management  you  may  put  your- 
self in  a  good  posture  of  living  with  it."  The  fellow, 
with  a  sort  of  dejection  in  his  looks,  asked  me  if  he  had 
disobliged  me  in  anything  ?  "Why?"  says  I.  "That 
I  was  willing  to  turn  him  out  of  his  service."  "  No, 
George"  (that  was  his  name)  says  I,  "but  you  may  live 
on  this  money  without  being  a  servant."  "  I'd  throw  it 
all  into  the  Elbe,"  says  he,  "  over  Torgau  bridge,  rather 
than  leave  your  service;  and  besides,"  says  he,  "can't  I 
save  my  money  without  going  from  you?  I  got  it  in 
your  service,  and  I'll  never  spend  it  out  of  your  service, 
unless  you  put  me  away.  I  hope  my  money  won't 
make  me  the  worse  servant;  if  I  thought  it  would,  I'd 
soon  have  little  enough."  "Nay,  George,"  says  I,  "I 
shall  not  oblige  you  to  it,  for  I  am  not  willing  to  lose  you 
neither:  come,  then,"  says  I,  "let  us  put  it  all  together, 
and  see  what  it  will  come  to."  So  he  laid  it  all  together 
on  the  table,  and  by  our  computation  he  had  gotten 
as  much  plunder  as  was  worth  about  1400  rix-dollars, 
besides  three  horses  with  their  furniture,  a  tent,  a  bed, 
and  some  wearing  linen.  Then  he  takes  the  necklace 
of  pearl,  a  very  good  watch,  a  diamond  ring,  and  100 
pieces  of  gold,  and  lays  them  by  themselves,  and  having, 
according  to  our  best  calculation,  valued  the  things,  he 
put  up  all  the  rest,  and  as  I  was  going  to  ask  him  what 
they  were  left  out  for,  he  takes  them  up  in  his  hand, 
and  coming  round  the  table,  told  me,  that  if  I  did  not 
think  him  unworthy  of  my  service  and  favour,  he  begged 
I  would  give  him  leave  to  make  that  present  to  me ; 
that  it  was  my  first  thought  his  going  out,  that  he  had 
got  it  all  in  my  service,  and  he  should  think  I  had  no 
kindness  for  him  if  I  should  refuse  it. 

I  was  resolved  in  my  mind  not  to  take  it  from  him, 
and  yet  I  could  find  no  means  to  resist  his  importunity. 
At  last  I  told  him,  I  would  accept  of  part  of  his  present, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       71 

and  that  I  esteemed  his  respect  in  that  as  much  as  the 
whole,  and  that  I  would  not  have  him  importune  me 
further ;  so  I  took  the  ring  and  watch,  with  the  horse 
and  furniture  as  before,  and  made  him  turn  all  the  rest 
into  money  at  Leipsic,  and  not  suffering  him  to  wear 
his  livery,  made  him  put  himself  into  a  tolerable 
equipage,  and  taking  a  young  Leipsicer  into  my  service, 
he  attended  me  as  a  gentleman  from  that  time  forward. 
The  king's  army  never  entered  Leipsic,  but  pro- 
ceeded to  Merseburg,  and  from  thence  to  Halle,  and  so 
marched  on  into  Franconia,  while  the  Duke  of  Saxony 
employed  his  forces  in  recovering  Leipsic  and  driving 
the  Imperialists  out  of  his  country.  I  continued  at 
Leipsic  twelve  days,  being  not  willing  to  leave  my 
comrade  till  he  was  recovered ;  but  Sir  John  Hep- 
burn so  often  importuned  me  to  come  into  the  army, 
and  sent  me  word  that  the  king  had  very  often  in- 
quired for  me,  that  at  last  I  consented  to  go  without 
him ;  so  having  made  our  appointment  where  to  meet, 
and  how  to  correspond  by  letters,  I  went  to  wait  on 
Sir  John  Hepburn,  who  then  lay  with  the  king's  army 
at  the  city  of  Erfurt  in  Saxony.  As  I  was  riding  be- 
tween Leipsic  and  Halle,  I  observed  my  horse  went  very 
awkwardly  and  uneasy,  and  sweat  very  much,  though 
the  weather  was  cold,  and  we  had  rid  but  very  softly ; 
I  fancied  therefore  that  the  saddle  might  hurt  the  horse, 
and  calls  my  new  captain  up.  "George,"  says  I,  "I 
believe  this  saddle  hurts  the  horse."  So  we  alighted, 
and  looking  under  the  saddle  found  the  back  of  the 
horse  extremely  galled ;  so  I  bid  him  take  off  the 
saddle,  which  he  did,  and  giving  the  horse  to  my 
young  Leipsicer  to  lead,  we  sat  down  to  see  if  we 
could  mend  it,  for  there  was  no  town  near  us.  Says 
George,  pointing  with  his  finger,  "  If  you  please  to  cut 
open  the  pannel  there,  I'll  get  something  to  stuff  into  it 
which  will  bear  it  from  the  horse's  back."  So  while  he 


72       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

looked  for  something  to  thrust  in,  I  cut  a  hole  in  the 
pannel  of  the  saddle,  and,  following  it  with  my  finger,  I 
felt  something  hard,  which  seemed  to  move  up  and 
down.  Again,  as  I  thrust  it  with  my  finger,  "  Here's 
something  that  should  not  be  here,"  says  I,  not  yet 
imagining  what  afterwards  fell  out,  and  calling,  "  Run 
back,"  bade  him  put  up  his  finger.  "  Whatever  'tis," 
says  he,  "  'tis  this  hurts  the  horse,  for  it  bears  just 
on  his  back  when  the  saddle  is  set  on."  So  we 
strove  to  take  hold  on  it,  but  could  not  reach  it ; 
at  last  we  took  the  upper  part  of  the  saddle  quite 
from  the  pannel,  and  there  lay  a  small  silk  purse 
wrapped  in  a  piece  of  leather,  and  full  of  gold 
ducats.  "  Thou  art  born  to  be  rich,  George,"  says  I 
to  him,  "here's  more  money."  We  opened  the  purse 
and  found  in  it  four  hundred  and  thirty-eight  small 
pieces  of  gold. 

There  I  had  a  new  skirmish  with  him  whose  the 
money  should  be.  I  told  him  'twas  his,  he  told  me 
no ;  I  had  accepted  of  the  horse  and  furniture,  and  all 
that  was  about  him  was  mine,  and  solemnly  vowed 
he  would  not  have  a  penny  of  it.  I  saw  no  remedy, 
but  put  up  the  money  for  the  present,  mended  our 
saddle,  and  went  on.  We  lay  that  night  at  Halle,  and 
having  had  such  a  booty  in  the  saddle,  I  made  him 
search  the  saddles  of  the  other  two  horses,  in  one 
of  which  we  found  three  French  crowns,  but  nothing 
in  the  other. 

We  arrived  at  Erfurt  the  28th  of  September,  but 
the  army  was  removed,  and  entered  into  Franconia, 
and  at  the  siege  of  Koningshoven  we  came  up  with 
them.  The  first  thing  I  did  was  to  pay  my  civilities 
to  Sir  John  Hepburn,  who  received  me  very  kindly, 
but  told  me  withal  that  I  had  not  done  well  to  be  so 
long  from  him,  and  the  king  had  particularly  inquired 
for  me,  had  commanded  him  to  bring  me  to  him  at  my 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       73 

return.  I  told  him  the  reason  of  my  stay  at  Leipsic, 
and  how  I  had  left  that  place  and  my  comrade,  before 
he  was  cured  of  his  wounds,  to  wait  on  him  according 
to  his  letters.  He  told  me  the  king  had  spoken  some 
things  very  obliging  about  me,  and  he  believed  would 
offer  me  some  command  in  the  army,  if  I  thought  well 
to  accept  of  it.  I  told  him  I  had  promised  my  father 
not  to  take  service  in  an  army  without  his  leave,  and 
yet  if  his  Majesty  should  offer  it,  I  neither  knew  how 
to  resist  it,  nor  had  I  an  inclination  to  anything  more 
than  the  service,  and  such  a  leader,  though  I  *had 
much  rather  have  served  as  a  volunteer  at  my  own 
charge  (which,  as  he  knew,  was  the  custom  of  our 
English  gentlemen)  than  in  any  command.  He 
replied,  "Do  as  you  think  fit;  but  some  gentlemen 
would  give  20,000  crowns  to  stand  so  fair  for  advance- 
ment as  you  do." 

The  town  of  Koningshoven  capitulated  that  day, 
and  Sir  John  was  ordered  to  treat  with  the  citizens,  so 
I  had  no  further  discourse  with  him  then ;  and  the 
town  being  taken,  the  army  immediately  advanced 
down  the  river  Maine,  for  the  king  had  his  eye  upon 
Frankfort  and  Mentz,  two  great  cities,  both  which 
he  soon  became  master  of,  chiefly  by  the  prodigious 
expedition  of  his  march ;  for  within  a  month  after  the 
battle,  he  was  in  the  lower  parts  of  the  empire,  and 
had  passed  from  the  Elbe  to  the  Rhine,  an  incredible 
conquest,  had  taken  all  the  strong  cities,  the  bishop- 
rics of  Bamberg,  of  Wurtzburg,  and  almost  all  the 
circle  of  Franconia,  with  part  of  Schawberland — a 
conquest  large  enough  to  be  seven  years  a-making  by 
the  common  course  of  arms. 

Business  going  on  thus,  the  king  had  not  leisure  to 
think  of  small  matters,  and  I  being  not  thoroughly 
resolved  in  my  mind,  did  not  press  Sir  John  to  intro- 
duce me.  I  had  wrote  to  my  father  with  an  account 


74       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

of  my  reception  in  the  army,  the  civilities  of  Sir  John 
Hepburn,  the  particulars  of  the  battle,  and  had  indeed 
pressed  him  to  give  me  leave  to  serve  the  King  of 
Sweden,  to  which  particular  I  waited  for  an  answer, 
but  the  following  occasion  determined  me  before  an 
answer  could  possibly  reach  me. 

The  king  was  before  the  strong  castle  of  Marien- 
burg,  which  commands  the  city  of  Wurtzburg.  He 
had  taken  the  city,  but  the  garrison  and  richer  part  of 
the  burghers  were  retired  into  the  castle,  and  trusting 
to  rfie  strength  of  the  place,  which  was  thought  im- 
pregnable, they  bade  the  Swedes  do  their  worst ;  'twas 
well  provided  with  all  things,  and  a  strong  garrison 
in  it,  so  that  the  army  indeed  expected  'twould  be  a 
long  piece  of  work.  The  castle  stood  on  a  high  rock, 
and  on  the  steep  of  the  rock  was  a  bastion  which 
defended  the  only  passage  up  the  hill  into  the  castle ; 
the  Scots  were  chose  out  to  make  this  attack,  and  the 
king  was  an  eye-witness  of  their  gallantry.  In  the 
action  Sir  John  was  not  commanded  out,  but  Sir  James 
Ramsey  led  them  on  ;  but  I  observed  that  most  of  the 
Scotch  officers  in  the  other  regiments  prepared  to  serve 
as  volunteers  for  the  honour  of  their  countrymen,  and 
Sir  John  Hepburn  led  them  on.  I  was  resolved  to  see 
this  piece  of  service,  and  therefore  joined  myself  to  the 
volunteers.  We  were  armed  with  partisans,  and  each 
man  two  pistols  at  our  belt.  It  was  a  piece  of  service 
that  seemed  perfectly  desperate,  the  advantage  of  the 
hill,  the  precipice  we  were  to  mount,  the  height  of 
the  bastion,  the  resolute  courage  and  number  of  the 
garrison,  who  from  a  complete  covert  made  a  terrible 
fire  upon  us,  all  joined  to  make  the  action  hopeless. 
But  the  fury  of  the  Scots  musketeers  was  not  to  be 
abated  by  any  difficulties ;  they  mounted  the  hill, 
scaled  the  works  like  madmen,  running  upon  the 
enemies'  pikes,  and  after  two  hours'  desperate  fight 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       75 

in  the  midst  of  fire  and  smoke,  took  it  by  storm,  and 
put  all  the  garrison  to  the  sword.  The  volunteers  did 
their  part,  and  had  their  share  of  the  loss  too,  for 
thirteen  or  fourteen  were  killed  out  of  thirty- seven,  be- 
sides the  wounded,  among  whom  I  received  a  hurt  more 
troublesome  than  dangerous  by  a  thrust  of  a  halberd 
into  my  arm,  which  proved  a  very  painful  wound,  and  I 
was  a  great  while  before  it  was  thoroughly  recovered. 

The  king  received  us  as  we  drew  off  at  the  foot 
of  the  hill,  calling  the  soldiers  his  brave  Scots,  and 
commending  the  officers  by  name.  The  next  morning 
the  castle  was  also  taken  by  storm,  and  the  greatest 
booty  that  ever  was  found  in  any  one  conquest  in  the 
whole  war  ;  the  soldiers  got  here  so  much  money  that 
they  knew  not  what  to  do  with  it,  and  the  plunder  they 
got  here  and  at  the  battle  of  Leipsic  made  them  so 
unruly,  that  had  not  the  king  been  the  best  master  of 
discipline  in  the  world,  they  had  never  been  kept  in 
any  reasonable  bounds. 

The  king  had  taken  notice  of  our  small  party  of 
volunteers,  and  though  I  thought  he  had  not  seen  me, 
yet  he  sent  the  next  morning  for  Sir  John  Hepburn, 
and  asked  him  if  I  were  not  come  to  the  army  ? 
"  Yes,"  says  Sir  John,  "  he  has  been  here  two  or 
three  days."  And  as  he  was  forming  an  excuse  for 
not  having  brought  me  to  wait  on  his  Majesty,  says  the 
king,  interrupting  him,  "  I  wonder  you  would  let  him 
thrust  himself  into  such  a  hot  piece  of  service  as  storm- 
ing the  Port  Graft.  Pray  let  him  know  I  saw  him, 
and  have  a  very  good  account  of  his  behaviour."  Sir 
John  returned  with  his  account  to  me,  and  pressed  me 
to  pay  my  duty  to  his  Majesty  the  next  morning ;  and 
accordingly,  though  I  had  but  an  ill  night  with  the 
pain  of  my  wound,  I  was  with  him  at  the  levee  in  the 
castle. 

I  cannot  but  give  some  short  account  of  the  glory  of 


76       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

the  morning ;  the  castle  had  been  cleared  of  the  dead 
bodies  of  the  enemies,  and  what  was  not  pillaged  by  the 
soldiers  was  placed  under  a  guard.  There  was  first  a 
magazine  of  very  good  arms  for  about  1 8,000  or  20,000 
foot,  and  4000  horse,  a  very  good  train  of  artillery 
of  about  eighteen  pieces  of  battery,  thirty-two  brass 
field-pieces,  and  four  mortars.  The  bishop's  treasure, 
and  other  public  monies  not  plundered  by  the  soldiers, 
was  telling  out  by  the  officers,  and  amounted  to  400,000 
florins  in  money ;  and  the  burghers  of  the  town  in 
solemn  procession,  bareheaded,  brought  the  king  three 
tons  of  gold  as  a  composition  to  exempt  the  city  from 
plunder.  Here  was  also  a  stable  of  gallant  horses 
which  the  king  had  the  curiosity  to  go  and  see. 

When  the  ceremony  of  the  burghers  was  over,  the 
king  came  down  into  the  castle  court,  walked  on  the 
parade  (where  the  great  train  of  artillery  was  placed 
on  their  carriages)  and  round  the  walls,  and  gave  order 
for  repairing  the  bastion  that  was  stormed  by  the  Scots  ; 
and  as  at  the  entrance  of  the  parade  Sir  John  Hepburn 
and  I  made  our  reverence  to  the  king,  "  Ho,  cavalier  !  " 
said  the  king  to  me,  "  I  am  glad  to  see  you,"  and  so 
passed  forward.  I  made  my  bow  very  low,  but  his 
Majesty  said  no  more  at  that  time. 

When  the  view  was  over  the  king  went  up  into  the 
lodgings,  and  Sir  John  and  I  walked  in  an  ante-chamber 
for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  when  one  of  the  gentle- 
men of  the  bedchamber  came  out  to  Sir  John,  and 
told  him  the  king  asked  for  him ;  he  stayed  but  a 
little  with  the  king,  and  come  out  to  me  and  told  me 
the  king  had  ordered  him  to  bring  me  to  him. 

His  Majesty,  with  a  countenance  full  of  honour  and 
goodness,  interrupted  my  compliment,  and  asked  me 
how  I  did ;  at  which  answering  only  with  a  bow,  says 
the  king,  "  I  am  sorry  to  see  you  are  hurt  ;  I  would 
have  laid  my  commands  on  you  not  to  have  shown 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       77 

yourself  in  so  sharp  a  piece  of  service,  if  I  had  known 
you  had  been  in  the  camp."  "  Your  Majesty  does  me 
too  much  honour,"  said  I,  "in  your  care  of  a  life  that 
has  yet  done  nothing  to  deserve  your  favour."  His 
Majesty  was  pleased  to  say  something  very  kind  to  me 
relating  to  my  behaviour  in  the  battle  of  Leipsic, 
which  I  have  not  vanity  enough  to  write ;  at  the  con- 
clusion whereof,  when  I  replied  very  humbly  that  I 
was  not  sensible  that  any  service  I  had  done,  or  could 
do,  could  possibly  merit  so  much  goodness,  he  told 
me  he  had  ordered  me  a  small  testimony  of  his  esteem, 
and  withal  gave  me  his  hand  to  kiss.  I  was  now  con- 
quered, and  with  a  sort  of  surprise  told  his  Majesty 
I  found  myself  so  much  engaged  by  his  goodness,  as 
well  as  my  own  inclination,  that  if  his  Majesty  would 
please  to  accept  of  my  devoir,  I  was  resolved  to  serve 
in  his  army,  or  wherever  he  pleased  to  command  me. 
"  Serve  me,"  says  the  king,  "  why,  so  you  do,  but  I 
must  not  have  you  be  a  musketeer ;  a  poor  soldier 
at  a  dollar  a  week  will  do  that."  "  Pray,  Sir  John," 
says  the  king,  "  give  him  what  commission  he  desires." 
"No  commission,  sir,"  says  I,  "would  please  me 
better  than  leave  to  fight  near  your  Majesty's  person, 
and  to  serve  you  at  my  own  charge  till  I  am  quali- 
fied by  more  experience  to  receive  your  commands." 
"  Why,  then,  it  shall  be  so,"  said  the  king,  "  and  I 
charge  you,  Hepburn,"  says  he,  "  when  anything  offers 
that  is  either  fit  for  him,  or  he  desires,  that  you  tell 
me  of  it;"  and  giving  me  his  hand  again  to  kiss,  I 
withdrew. 

I  was  followed  before  I  had  passed  the  castle  gate 
by  one  of  the  king's  pages,  who  brought  me  a  warrant, 
directed  to  Sir  John  Hepburn,  to  go  to  the  master  of 
the  horse  for  an  immediate  delivery  of  things  ordered 
by  the  king  himself  for  my  account,  where  being  come, 
the  equerry  produced  me  a  very  good  coach  with  four 


78       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

horses,  harness,  and  equipage,  and  two  Tery  fine  saddle- 
horses,  out  of  the  stable  of  the  bishop's  horses  afore- 
mentioned ;  with  these  there  was  a  list  for  three  servants, 
and  a  warrant  to  the  steward  of  the  king's  baggage 
to  defray  me,  my  horses,  and  servants  at  the  king's 
charge  till  farther  order.  I  was  very  much  at  a  loss  how 
to  manage  myself  in  this  so  strange  freedom  of  so  great 
a  prince,  and  consulting  with  Sir  John  Hepburn,  I  was 
proposing  to  him  whether  it  was  not  proper  to  go  im- 
mediately back  to  pay  my  duty  to  his  Majesty,  and 
acknowledge  his  bounty  in  the  best  terms  I  could,  but 
while  we  were  resolving  to  do  so,  the  guards  stood 
to  their  arms,  and  we  saw  the  king  go  out  at  the  gate 
in  his  coach  to  pass  into  the  city,  so  we  were  diverted 
from  it  for  that  time.  I  acknowledge  the  bounty  of 
the  king  was  very  surprising,  but  I  must  say  it  was 
not  so  very  strange  to  me  when  I  afterwards  saw  the 
course  of  his  management.  Bounty  in  him  was  his 
natural  talent,  but  he  never  distributed  his  favours  but 
where  he  thought  himself  both  loved  and  faithfully 
served,  and  when  he  was  so,  even  the  single  actions  of 
his  private  soldiers  he  would  take  particular  notice  of 
himself,  and  publicly  own,  acknowledge,  and  reward 
them,  of  which  I  am  obliged  to  give  some  instances. 

A  private  musketeer  at  the  storming  the  castle  of 
Wurtzburg,  when  all  the  detachment  was  beaten  off, 
stood  in  the  face  of  the  enemy  and  fired  his  piece, 
and  though  he  had  a  thousand  shot  made  at  him,  stood 
unconcerned,  and  charged  his  piece  again,  and  let  fly 
at  the  enemy,  continuing  to  do  so  three  times,  at  the 
same  time  beckoning  with  his  hand  to  his  fellows  to 
come  on  again,  which  they  did,  animated  by  his  ex- 
ample, and  carried  the  place  for  the  king. 

When  the  town  was  taken  the  king  ordered  the 
regiment  to  be  drawn  out,  and  calling  for  that  soldier, 
thanked  him  before  them  all  for  taking  the  town  for 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       79 

him,  gave  him  a  thousand  dollars  in  money,  and  a 
commission  with  his  own  hand  for  a  foot  company, 
or  leave  to  go)  home,  which  he  would.  The  soldier 
took  the  commission  on  his  knees,  kissed  it,  and  put 
it  into  his  bosom,  and  told  the  king,  he  would  nerer 
leave  his  service  as  long  as  he  lived. 

This  bounty  of  the  king's,  timed  and  suited  by  his 
judgment,  was  the  reason  that  he  was  very  well 
served,  entirely  beloved,  and  most  punctually  obeyed  by 
his  soldiers,  who  were  sure  to  be  cherished  and  en- 
couraged if  they  did  well,  having  the  king  generally 
an  eye-witness  of  their  behaviour. 

My  indiscretion  rather  than  valour  had  engaged  me 
so  far  at  the  battle  of  Leipsic,  that  being  in  the  van  of 
Sir  John  Hepburn's  brigade,  almost  three  whole  com- 
panies of  us  were  separated  from  our  line,  and  sur- 
rounded by  the  enemies'  pikes.  I  cannot  but  say  also 
that  we  were  disengaged  rather  by  a  desperate  charge 
Sir  John  made  with  the  whole  regiment  to  fetch  us 
off,  than  by  our  own  valour,  though  we  were  not 
wanting  to  ourselves  neither,  but  this  part  of  the  action 
being  talked  of  very  much  to  the  advantage  of  the 
young  English  volunteer,  and  possibly  more  than  I 
deserved,  was  the  occasion  of  all  the  distinction  the 
king  used  me  with  ever  after. 

I  had  by  this  time  letters  from  my  father,  in  which, 
though  with  some  reluctance,  he  left  me  at  liberty  to 
enter  into  arms  if  I  thought  fit,  always  obliging  me  to 
be  directed,  and,  as  he  said,  commanded  by  Sir  John 
Hepburn.  At  the  same  time  he  wrote  to  Sir  John 
Hepburn,  commending  his  son's  fortunes,  as  he  called 
it,  to  his  care,  which  letters  Sir  John  showed  the  king 
unknown  to  me. 

I  took  care  always  to  acquaint  my  father  of  every 
circumstance,  and  forgot  not  to  mention  his  Majesty's 
extraordinary  favour,  which  so  affected  my  father, 


80       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

that  he  obtained  a  very  honourable  mention  of  it  in  a 
letter  from  King  Charles  to  the  King  of  Sweden, 
written  by  his  own  hand. 

I  had  waited  on  his  Majesty,  with  Sir  John  Hep- 
burn, to  give  him  thanks  for  his  magnificent  present, 
and  was  received  with  his  usual  goodness,  and  after 
that  I  was  every  day  among  the  gentlemen  of  his 
ordinary  attendance.  And  if  his  Majesty  went  out  on 
a  party,  as  he  would  often  do,  or  to  view  the  country, 
I  always  attended  him  among  the  volunteers,  of  whom 
a  great  many  always  followed  him ;  and  he  would 
often  call  me  out,  talk  with  me,  send  me  upon 
messages  to  towns,  to  princes,  free  cities,  and  the  like, 
upon  extraordinary  occasions. 

The  first  piece  of  service  he  put  me  upon  had  like 
to  have  embroiled  me  with  one  of  his  favourite  colonels. 
The  king  was  marching  through  the  Bergstraet,  a  low 
country  on  the  edge  of  the  Rhine,  and,  as  all  men 
thought,  was  going  to  besiege  Heidelberg,  but  on  a 
sudden  orders  a  party  of  his  guards,  with  five  com- 
panies of  Scots,  to  be  drawn  out ;  while  they  were 
drawing  out  this  detachment  the  king  calls  me  to  him, 
"  Ho,  cavalier,"  says  he,  that  was  his  usual  word, 
"  you  shall  command  this  party  ;  "  and  thereupon  gives 
me  orders  to  march  back  all  night,  and  in  the  morning, 
by  break  of  day,  to  take  post  under  the  walls  of  the 
fort  of  Oppenheim,  and  immediately  to  entrench  myself 
as  well  as  I  could.  Grave  Neels,  the  colonel  of  his 
guards,  thought  himself  injured  by  this  command,  but 
the  king  took  the  matter  upon  himself,  and  Grave 
Neels  told  me  very  familiarly  afterwards,  "  We  have 
such  a  master,"  says  he,  "  that  no  man  can  be  affronted 
by.  I  thought  myself  wronged,"  says  he,  "  when  you 
commanded  my  men  over  my  head;  and  for  my  life," 
says  he,  "  I  knew  not  which  way  to  be  angry." 

I  executed   my  commission   so  punctually  that  by 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       81 

break  of  day  I  was  set  down  within  musket-shot  of 
the  fort,  under  covert  of  a  little  mount,  on  which  stood 
a  windmill,  and  had  indifferently  fortified  myself,  and 
at  the  same  time  had  posted  some  of  my  men  on  two 
other  passes,  but  at  farther  distance  from  the  fort,  so 
that  the  fort  was  effectually  blocked  up  on  the  land 
side.  In  the  afternoon  the  enemy  sallied  on  my  first 
entrenchment,  but  being  covered  from  their  cannon, 
and  defended  by  a  ditch  which  I  had  drawn  across  the 
road,  they  were  so  well  received  by  my  musketeers  that 
they  retired  with  the  loss  of  six  or  seven  men. 

The  next  day  Sir  John  Hepburn  was  sent  with  two 
brigades  of  foot  to  carry  on  the  work,  and  so  my 
commission  ended.  The  king  expressed  himself  very 
well  pleased  with  what  I  had  done,  and  when  he  was 
so  was  never  sparing  of  telling  of  it,  for  he  used  to  say 
that  public  commendations  were  a  great  encouragement 
to  valour. 

While  Sir  John  Hepburn  lay  before  the  fort  and 
was  preparing  to  storm  it,  the  king's  design  was  to  get 
over  the  Rhine,  but  the  Spaniards  which  were  in  Op- 
penheim  had  sunk  all  the  boats  they  could  find.  At 
last  the  king,  being  informed  where  some  lay  that  were 
sunk,  caused  them  to  be  weighed  with  all  the  expedition 
possible,  and  in  the  night  of  the  yth  of  December, 
in  three  boats,  passed  over  his  regiment  of  guards,  about 
three  miles  above  the  town,  and,  as  the  king  thought, 
secure  from  danger ;  but  they  were  no  sooner  landed, 
and  not  drawn  into  order,  but  they  were  charged  by  a 
body  of  Spanish  horse,  and  had  not  the  darkness  given 
them  opportunity  to  draw  up  in  the  enclosures  in  several 
little  parties,  they  had  been  in  great  danger  of  being 
disordered ;  but  by  this  means  they  lined  the  hedges 
and  lanes  so  with  musketeers,  that  the  remainder  had 
time  to  draw  up  in  battalia,  and  saluted  the  horse  with 
their  muskets,  so  that  they  drew  farther  off. 

F 


82       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  king  was  very  impatient,  hearing  his  men 
engaged,  having  no  boats  nor  possible  means  to  get 
over  to  help  them.  At  last,  about  eleven  o'clock  at 
night,  the  boats  came  back,  and  the  king  thrust  another 
regiment  into  them,  and  though  his  officers  dissuaded 
him,  would  go  over  himself  with  them  on  foot,  and  did 
so.  This  was  three  months  that  very  day  when  the 
battle  of  Leipsic  was  fought,  and  winter  time  too, 
that  the  progress  of  his  arms  had  spread  from  the 
Elbe,  where  it  parts  Saxony  and  Brandenburg,  to 
the  Lower  Palatinate  and  the  Rhine. 

I  went  over  in  the  boat  with  the  king.  I  never  saw 
him  in  so  much  concern  in  my  life,  for  he  was  in  pain 
for  his  men  ;  but  before  we  got  on  shore  the  Spaniards 
retired.  However,  the  king  landed,  ordered  his  men, 
and  prepared  to  entrench,  but  he  had  not  time,  for  by 
that  time  the  boats  were  put  off  again,  the  Spaniards, 
not  knowing  more  troops  were  landed,  and  being  rein- 
forced from  Oppenheim,  came  on  again,  and  charged 
with  great  fury ;  but  all  things  were  now  in  order, 
and  they  were  readily  received  and  beaten  back  again. 
They  came  on  again  the  third  time,  and  with  repeated 
charges  attacked  us ;  but  at  last  finding  us  too  strong 
for  them  they  gave  it  over.  By  this  time  another 
regiment  of  foot  was  come  over,  and  as  soon  as  day 
appeared  the  king  with  the  three  regiments  marched  to 
the  town,  which  surrendered  at  the  first  summons,  and 
the  next  day  the  fort  yielded  to  Sir  John  Hepburn. 

The  castle  at  Oppenheim  held  out  still  with  a 
garrison  of  800  Spaniards,  and  the  king,  leaving  200 
Scots  of  Sir  James  Ramsey's  men  in  the  town,  drew 
out  to  attack  the  castle.  Sir  James  Ramsey  being  left 
wounded  at  Wurtzburg,  the  king  gave  me  the  command 
of  those  200  men,  which  were  a  regiment,  that  is  to 
say,  all  that  were  left  of  a  gallant  regiment  of  2000 
Scots,  which  the  king  brought  out  of  Sweden  with  him, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       83 

under  that  brave  colonel.  There  was  about  thirty 
officers,  who,  having  no  soldiers,  were  yet  in  pay,  and 
served  as  reformadoes  with  the  regiment,  and  were 
over  and  above  the  200  men. 

The  king  designed  to  storm  the  castle  on  the  lower 
side  by  the  way  that  leads  to  Mentz,  and  Sir  John 
Hepburn  landed  from  the  other  side  and  marched  up  to 
storm  on  the  Rhine  port. 

My  reformado  Scots,  having  observed  that  the  town 
port  of  the  castle  was  not  so  well  guarded  as  the  rest, 
all  the  eyes  of  the  garrison  being  bent  towards  the  king 
and  Sir  John  Hepburn,  came  running  to  me,  and  told 
me  they  believed  they  could  enter  the  castle,  sword  in 
hand,  if  I  would  give  them  leave.  I  told  them  I  durst 
not  give  them  orders,  my  commission  being  only  to 
keep  and  defend  the  town ;  but  they  being  very  im- 
portunate, I  told  them  they  were  volunteers,  and  might 
do  what  they  pleased,  that  I  would  lend  them  fifty 
men,  and  draw  up  the  rest  to  second  them,  or  bring 
them  off,  as  I  saw  occasion,  so  as  I  might  not  hazard  the 
town.  This  was  as  much  as  they  desired  ;  they  sallied 
immediately,  and  in  a  trice  the  volunteers  scaled  the 
port,  cut  in  pieces  the  guard,  and  burst  open  the  gate, 
at  which  the  fifty  entered.  Finding  the  gate  won,  I 
advanced  immediately  with  100  musketeers  more, 
having  locked  up  all  the  gates  of  the  town  but  the 
castle  port,  and  leaving  fifty  still  for  a  reserve  just  at 
that  gate ;  the  townsmen,  too,  seeing  the  castle,  as  it 
were,  taken,  run  to  arms,  and  followed  me  with  above 
200  men.  The  Spaniards  were  knocked  down  by  the 
Scots  before  they  knew  what  the  matter  was,  and  the 
king  and  Sir  John  Hepburn,  advancing  to  storm,  were 
surprised  when,  instead  of  resistance,  they  saw  the 
Spaniards  throwing  themselves  over  the  walls  to  avoid 
the  fury  of  the  Scots.  Few  of  the  garrison  got  away, 
but  were  either  killed  or  taken,  and  having  cleared  the 


84       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

castle,  I  set  open  the  port  on  the  king's  side,  and  sent 
his  Majesty  word  the  castle  was  his  own.  The  king 
came  on,  and  entered  on  foot.  I  received  him  at  the 
head  of  the  Scots  reformadoes,  who  all  saluted  him 
with  their  pikes.  The  king  gave  them  his  hat,  and 
turning  about,  "  Brave  Scots,  brave  Scots,"  says  he 
smiling,  "  you  were  too  quick  for  me  ;  "  then  beckon- 
ing to  me,  made  me  tell  him  how  and  in  what  manner 
we  had  managed  the  storm,  which  he  was  exceeding 
well  pleased  with,  but  especially  at  the  caution  I  had 
used  to  bring  them  off  if  they  had  miscarried,  and 
secured  the  town. 

From  hence  the  army  marched  to  Mentz,  which  in 
four  days'  time  capitulated,  with  the  fort  and  citadel, 
and  the  city  paid  his  Majesty  300,000  dollars  to  be 
exempted  from  the  fury  of  the  soldiers.  Here  the  king 
himself  drew  the  plan  of  those  invincible  fortifications 
which  to  this  day  makes  it  one  of  the  strongest  cities  in 
Germany. 

Friburg,  Koningstien,  Neustadt,  Kaiserslautern,  and 
almost  all  the  Lower  Palatinate,  surrendered  at  the  very 
terror  of  the  King  of  Sweden's  approach,  and  never 
suffered  the  danger  of  a  siege. 

The  king  held  a  most  magnificent  court  at  Mentz, 
attended  by  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse,  with  an  incredible 
number  of  princes  and  lords  of  the  empire,  with  ambas- 
sadors and  residents  of  foreign  princes ;  and  here  his 
Majesty  stayed  till  March,  when  the  queen,  with  a  great 
retinue  of  Swedish  nobility,  came  from  Erfurt  to  see 
him.  The  king,  attended  by  a  gallant  train  of  German 
nobility,  went  to  Frankfort,  and  from  thence  on  to 
Hoest,  to  meet  the  queen,  where  her  Majesty  arrived 
February  8. 

During  the  king's  stay  in  these  parts,  his  armies 
were  not  idle,  his  troops,  on  one  side  under  the  Rhine- 
grave,  a  brave  and  ever-fortunate  commander,  and 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       85 

under  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse,  on  the  other,  ranged 
the  country  from  Lorraine  to  Luxemburg,  and  past 
the  Moselle  on  the  west,  and  the  Weser  on  the  north. 
Nothing  could  stand  before  them :  the  Spanish  army 
which  came  to  the  relief  of  the  Catholic  Electors  was 
everywhere  defeated  and  beaten  quite  out  of  the  country, 
and  the  Lorraine  army  quite  ruined.  'Twas  a  most  plea- 
sant court  sure  as  ever  was  seen,  where  every  day 
expresses  arrived  of  armies  defeated,  towns  surrendered, 
contributions  agreed  upon,  parties  routed,  prisoners  taken, 
and  princes  sending  ambassadors  to  sue  for  truces  and 
neutralities,  to  make  submissions  and  compositions,  and 
to  pay  arrears  and  contributions. 

Here  arrived,  February  10,  the  King  of  Bohemia 
from  England,  and  with  him  my  Lord  Craven,  with  a 
body  of  Dutch  horse,  and  a  very  fine  train  of  English 
volunteers,  who  immediately,  without  any  stay,  marched 
on  to  Hoest  to  wait  upon  his  Majesty  of  Sweden,  who 
received  him  with  a  great  deal  of  civility,  and  was 
treated  at  a  noble  collation  by  the  king  and  queen  at 
Frankfort.  Never  had  the  unfortunate  king  so  fair 
a  prospect  of  being  restored  to  his  inheritance  of  the 
Palatinate  as  at  that  time,  and  had  King  James,  his 
father-in-law,  had  a  soul  answerable  to  the  occasion, 
it  had  been  effected  before,  but  it  was  a  strange  thing 
to  see  him  equipped  from  the  English  court  with  one 
lord  and  about  forty  or  fifty  English  gentlemen  in  his 
attendance,  whereas  had  the  King  of  England  now, 
as  'tis  well  known  he  might  have  done,  furnished  him 
with  10,000  or  1 2,000  English  foot,  nothing  could  have 
hindered  him  taking  a  full  possession  of  his  country; 
and  yet  even  without  that  help  did  the  King  of 
Sweden  clear  almost  his  whole  country  of  Imperialists, 
and  after  his  death  reinstal  his  son  in  the  Electorate : 
but  no  thanks  to  us. 

The  Lord  Craven  did  me  the   honour  to  inquire 


86       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

for  me  by  name,  and  his  Majesty  of  Sweden  did  me 
yet  more  by  presenting  me  to  the  King  of  Bohemia, 
and  my  Lord  Craven  gave  me  a  letter  from  my  father. 
And  speaking  something  of  my  father  having  served 
under  the  Prince  of  Orange  in  the  famous  battle  of 
Nieuport,  the  king,  smiling,  returned,  "  And  pray  tell 
him  from  me  his  son  has  served  as  well  in  the  warm 
battle  of  Leipsic." 

My  father  being  very  much  pleased  with  the  honour 
I  had  received  from  so  great  a  king,  had  ordered  me 
to  acquaint  his  Majesty  that,  if  he  pleased  to  accept 
of  their  service,  he  would  raise  him  a  regiment  of  Eng- 
lish horse  at  his  own  charge  to  be  under  my  command, 
and  to  be  sent  over  into  Holland ;  and  my  Lord 
Craven  had  orders  from  the  King  of  England  to 
signify  his  consent  to  the  said  levy.  I  acquainted  my 
old  friend  Sir  John  Hepburn  with  the  contents  of 
the  letter  in  order  to  have  his  advice,  who  being 
pleased  with  the  proposal,  would  have  me  go  to  the 
king  immediately  with  the  letter,  but  present  service 
put  it  off  for  some  days. 

The  taking  of  Creutznach  was  the  next  service  of 
any  moment.  The  king  drew  out  in  person  to  the 
siege  of  this  town.  The  town  soon  came  to  parley, 
but  the  castle  seemed  a  work  of  difficulty,  for  its 
situation  was  so  strong  and  so  surrounded  with  works 
behind  and  above  one  another,  that  most  people 
thought  the  king  would  receive  a  check  from  it ;  but 
it  was  not  easy  to  resist  the  resolution  of  the  King  of 
Sweden. 

He  never  battered  it  but  with  two  small  pieces,  but 
having  viewed  the  works  himself,  ordered  a  mine 
under  the  first  ravelin,  which  being  sprung  with  suc- 
cess, he  commands  a  storm.  I  think  there  was  not 
more  commanded  men  than  volunteers,  both  English, 
Scots,  French,  and  Germans.  My  old  comrade  was 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       87 

by  this  time  recovered  of  his  wound  at  Leipsic, 
and  made  one.  The  first  body  of  volunteers,  of  about 
forty,  were  led  on  by  my  Lord  Craven,  and  I  led  the 
second,  among  whom  were  most  of  the  reformade 
Scots  officers  who  took  the  castle  of  Oppenheim. 
The  first  party  was  not  able  to  make  anything  of  it ; 
the  garrison  fought  with  so  much  fury  that  many  of 
the  volunteer  gentlemen  being  wounded,  and  some 
killed,  the  rest  were  beaten  off  with  loss.  The  king 
was  in  some  passion  at  his  men,  and  rated  them  for 
running  away,  as  he  called  it,  though  they  really  re- 
treated in  good  order,  and  commanded  the  assault  to 
be  renewed.  'Twas  our  turn  to  fall  on  next.  Our 
Scots  officers,  not  being  used  to  be  beaten,  advanced 
immediately,  and  my  Lord  Craven  with  his  volun- 
teers pierced  in  with  us,  fighting  gallantly  in  the 
breach  with  a  pike  in  his  hand ;  and,  to  give  him  the 
honour  due  to  his  bravery,  he  was  with  the  first  on  the 
top  of  the  rampart,  and  gave  his  hand  to  my  comrade, 
and  lifted  him  up  after  him.  We  helped  one  another 
up,  till  at  last  almost  all  the  volunteers  had  gained  the 
height  of  the  ravelin,  and  maintained  it  with  a  great 
deal  of  resolution,  expecting  when  the  commanded 
men  had  gained  the  same  height  to  advance  upon  the 
enemy ;  when  one  of  the  enemy's  captains  called  to 
my  Lord  Craven,  and  told  him  if  they  might  have 
honourable  terms  they  would  capitulate,  which  my 
lord  telling  him  he  would  engage  for,  the  garrison 
fired  no  more,  and  the  captain,  leaping  down  from  the 
next  rampart,  came  with  my  Lord  Craven  into  the 
camp,  where  the  conditions  were  agreed  on,  and  the 
castle  surrendered. 

After  the  taking  of  this  town,  the  king,  hearing  of 
Tilly's  approach,  and  how  he  had  beaten  Gustavus 
Horn,  the  king's  field- marshal,  out  of  Bamberg,  began 
to  draw  his  forces  together,  and  leaving  the  care  of  his 


88       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

conquests  in  these  parts  to  his  chancellor  Oxenstiern, 
prepares  to  advance  towards  Bavaria. 

I  had  taken  an  opportunity  to  wait  upon  his 
Majesty  with  Sir  John  Hepburn,  and  being  about  to 
introduce  the  discourse  of  my  father's  letter,  the  king 
told  me  he  had  received  a  compliment  on  my  account 
in  a  letter  from  King  Charles.  I  told  him  his 
Majesty  had  by  his  exceeding  generosity  bound  me 
and  all  my  friends  to  pay  their  acknowledgments  to 
him,  and  that  I  supposed  my  father  had  obtained  such 
a  mention  of  it  from  the  King  of  England,  as  gratitude 
moved  him  to ;  that  his  Majesty's  favour  had  been 
shown  in  me  to  a  family  both  willing  and  ready  to 
serve  him,  that  I  had  received  some  commands  from 
my  father,  which,  if  his  Majesty  pleased  to  do  me 
the  honour  to  accept  of,  might  put  me  in  a  condition 
to  acknowledge  his  Majesty's  goodness  in  a  manner 
more  proportioned  to  the  sense  I  had  of  his  favour ; 
and  with  that  J  produced  my  father's  letter,  and  read 
that  clause  in  it  which  related  to  the  regiment  of  horse, 
which  was  as  follows  : — 

"  I  read  with  a  great  deal  of  satisfaction  the  account 
you  give  of  the  great  and  extraordinary  conquests  of 
the  King  of  Sweden,  and  with 'more  his  Majesty's 
singular  favour  to  you ;  I  hope  you  will  be  careful  to 
value  and  deserve  so  much  honour.  I  am  glad  you 
rather  chose  to  serve  as  a  volunteer  at  your  own 
charge,  than  to  take  any  command,  which,  for  want 
of  experience,  you  might  misbehave  in. 

"  I  have  obtained  of  the  king  that  he  will  particularly 
thank  his  Majesty  of  Sweden  for  the  honour  he  has 
done  you,  and  if  his  Majesty  gives  you  so  much 
freedom,  I  could  be  glad  you  should  in  the  humblest 
manner  thank  his  Majesty  in  the  name  of  an  old 
broken  soldier. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       89 

"  If  you  think  yourself  officer  enough  to  command 
them,  and  his  Majesty  pleased  to  accept  them,  I 
would  have  you  offer  to  raise  his  Majesty  a  regiment 
of  horse,  which,  I  think,  I  may  near  complete  in  our 
neighbourhood  with  some  of  your  old  acquaintance, 
who  are  very  willing  to  see  the  world.  If  his 
Majesty  gives  you  the  word,  they  shall  receive  his 
commands  in  the  Maes,  the  king  having  promised  me 
to  give  them  arms,  and  transport  them  for  that  service 
into  Holland  ;  and  I  hope  they  may  do  his  Majesty 
such  service  as  may  be  for  your  honour  and  the 
advantage  of  his  Majesty's  interest  and  glory. 

"YouR  LOVING  FATHER." 

"  '  Tis  an  offer  like  a  gentleman  and  like  a  soldier," 
says  the  king,  "  and  I  '11  accept  of  it  on  two  con- 
ditions :  first,"  says  the  king,  "  that  I  will  pay  your 
father  the  advance  money  for  the  raising  the  regiment ; 
and  next,  that  they  shall  be  landed  in  the  Weser  or 
the  Elbe;  for  which,  if  the  King  of  England  will  not, 
I  will  pay  the  passage ;  for  if  they  land  in  Holland,  it 
may  prove  very  difficult  to  get  them  to  us  when  the 
army  shall  be  marched  out  of  this  part  of  the  country." 

I  returned  this  answer  to  my  father,  and  sent  my 
man  George  into  England  to  order  that  regiment,  and 
made  him  quartermaster.  I  sent  blank  commissions 
for  the  officers,  signed  by  the  king,  to  be  filled  up  as 
my  father  should  think  fit;  and  when  I  had  the  king's 
order  for  the  commissions,  the  secretary  told  me  I 
must  go  back  to  the  king  with  them.  Accordingly 
I  went  back  to  the  king,  who,  opening  the  packet,  laid 
all  the  commissions  but  one  upon  a  table  before  him, 
and  bade  me  take  them,  and  keeping  that  one  still  in 
his  hand,  "  Now,"  says  he,  "  you  are  one  of  my 
soldiers,"  and  therewith  gave  me  his  commission,  as 
colonel  of  horse  in  present  pay.  I  took  the  com- 


90       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

mission  kneeling,  and  humbly  thanked  his  Majesty. 
"  But,"  says  the  king,  "  there  is  one  article-of-war  I 
expect  of  you  more  than  of  others."  "  Your  Majesty 
can  expect  nothing  of  me  which  I  shall  not  willingly 
comply  with,"  said  I,  "  as  soon  as  I  have  the  honour 
to  understand  what  it  is."  "Why,  it  is,"  says  the 
king,  "  that  you  shall  never  fight  but  when  you  have 
orders,  for  I  shall  not  be  willing  to  lose  my  colonel 
before  I  have  the  regiment."  "  I  shall  be  ready  at 
all  times,  sir,"  returned  I,  "to  obey  your  Majesty's 
orders." 

I  sent  my  man  express  with  the  king's  answer  and 
the  commission  to  my  father,  who  had  the  regiment 
completed  in  less  than  two  months'  time,  and  six  of  the 
officers,  with  a  list  of  the  rest,  came  away  to  me,  whom  I 
presented  to  his  Majesty  when  he  lay  before  Nurem- 
berg, where  they  kissed  his  hand. 

One  of  the  captains  offered  to  bring  the  whole  regi- 
ment travelling  as  private  men  into  the  army  in  six 
weeks'  time,  and  either  to  transport  their  equipage,  or 
buy  it  in  Germany,  but  'twas  thought  impracticable. 
However,  I  had  so  many  came  in  that  manner  that 
I  had  a  complete  troop  always  about  me,  and  obtained 
the  king's  order  to  muster  them  as  a  troop. 

On  the  8th  of  March  the  king  decamped,  and, 
marching  up  the  river  Maine,  bent  his  course  directly 
for  Bavaria,  taking  several  small  places  by  the  way, 
and  expecting  to  engage  with  Tilly,  who  he  thought 
would  dispute  his  entrance  into  Bavaria,  kept  his  army 
together ;  but  Tilly,  finding  himself  too  weak  to  en- 
counter him,  turned  away,  and  leaving  Bavaria  open  to 
the  king,  marched  into  the  Upper  Palatinate.  The 
king  finding  the  country  clear  of  the  Imperialists  comes 
to  Nuremberg,  made  his  entrance  into  that  city  the  2 1st 
of  March,  and  being  nobly  treated  by  the  citizens,  he 
continued  his  march  into  Bavaria,  and  on  the  26th  sat 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       91 

down  before  Donauwerth.  The  town  was  taken  the 
next  day  by  storm,  so  swift  were  the  conquests  of  this 
invincible  captain.  Sir  John  Hepburn,  with  the  Scots 
and  the  English  volunteers  at  the  head  of  them,  entered 
the  town  first,  and  cut  all  the  garrison  to  pieces,  except 
such  as  escaped  over  the  bridge. 

I  had  no  share  in  the  business  of  Donauwerth,  being 
now  among  the  horse,  but  I  was  posted  on  the  roads 
with  five  troops  of  horse,  where  we  picked  up  a  great 
many  stragglers  of  the  garrison,  who  we  made  prisoners 
of  war. 

'Tis  observable  that  this  town  of  Donauwerth  is  a 
very  strong  place  and  well  fortified,  and  yet  such  expedi- 
tion did  the  king  make,  and  such  resolution  did  he  use 
in  his  first  attacks,  that  he  carried  the  town  without 
putting  himself  to  the  trouble  of  formal  approaches. 
'  Twas  generally  his  way  when  he  came  before  any  town 
with  a  design  to  besiege  it ;  he  never  would  encamp  at 
a  distance  and  begin  his  trenches  a  great  way  off,  but 
bring  his  men  immediately  within  half-musket  shot  of 
the  place ;  there  getting  under  the  best  cover  he  could, 
he  would  immediately  begin  his  batteries  and  trenches 
before  their  faces ;  and  if  there  was  any  place  possibly 
to  be  attacked,  he  would  fall  to  storming  immediately. 
By  this  resolute  way  of  coming  on  he  carried  many 
a  town  in  the  first  heat  of  his  men,  which  would  have 
held  out  many  days  against  a  more  regular  siege. 

This  march  of  the  king  broke  all  Tilly's  measures, 
for  now  he  was  obliged  to  face  about,  and  leaving  the 
Upper  Palatinate,  to  come  to  the  assistance  of  the  Duke 
of  Bavaria;  for  the  king  being  20,000  strong,  besides 
10,000  foot  and  4000  horse  and  dragoons  which 
joined  him  from  the  Duringer  Wald,  was  resolved  to 
ruin  the  duke,  who  lay  now  open  to  him,  and  was  the 
most  powerful  and  inveterate  enemy  of  the  Protestants 
in  the  empire. 


92       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Tilly  was  now  joined  with  the  Duke  of  Bavaria,  and 
might  together  make  about  22,000  men,  and  in  order  to 
keep  the  Swedes  out  of  the  country  of  Bavaria,  had 
planted  themselves  along  the  banks  of  the  river  Lech, 
which  runs  on  the  edge  of  the  duke's  territories ;  and 
having  fortified  the  other  side  of  the  river,  and  planted 
his  cannon  for  several  miles  at  all  the  convenient  places 
on  the  river,  resolved  to  dispute  the  king's  passage. 

I  shall  be  the  longer  in  relating  this  account  of  the 
Lech,  being  esteemed  in  those  days  as  great  an  action 
as  any  battle  or  siege  of  that  age,  and  particularly 
famous  for  the  disaster  of  the  gallant  old  General  Tilly ; 
and  for  that  I  can  be  more  particular  in  it  than  other  ac- 
counts, having  been  an  eye-witness  to  every  part  of  it. 

The  king  being  truly  informed  of  the  disposition  of 
the  Bavarian  army,  was  once  of  the  mind  to  have  left  the 
banks  of  the  Lech,  have  repassed  the  Danube,  and  so 
setting  down  before  Ingolstadt,  the  duke's  capital  city, 
by  the  taking  that  strong  town  to  have  made  his  entrance 
into  Bavaria,  and  the  conquest  of  such  a  fortress,  one 
entire  action ;  but  the  strength  of  the  place,  and 
the  difficulty  of  maintaining  his  leaguer  in  an  enemy's 
country  while  Tilly  was  so  strong  in  the  field,  diverted 
him  from  that  design ;  he  therefore  concluded  that 
Tilly  was  first  to  be  beaten  out  of  the  country,  and  then 
the  siege  of  Ingolstadt  would  be  the  easier. 

Whereupon  the  king  resolved  to  go  and  view  the 
situation  of  the  enemy.  His  Majesty  went  out  the  2nd 
of  April  with  a  strong  party  of  horse,  which  I  had 
the  honour  to  command.  We  marched  as  near  as  we 
could  to  the  banks  of  the  river,  not  to  be  too  much 
exposed  to  the  enemy's  cannon,  and  having  gained  a 
little  height,  where  the  whole  course  of  the  river  might 
be  seen,  the  king  halted,  and  commanded  to  draw  up. 
The  king  alighted,  and  calling  me  to  him,  examined 
every  reach  and  turning  of  the  river  by  his  glass,  but 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       93 

finding  the  river  run  a  long  and  almost  a  straight  course 
he  could  find  no  place  which  he  liked ;  but  at  last 
turning  himself  north,  and  looking  down  the  stream,  he 
found  the  river,  stretching  a  long  reach,  doubles  short 
upon  itself,  making  a  round  and  very  narrow  point. 
"  There's  a  point  will  do  our  business,"  says  the  king, 
"  and  if  the  ground  be  good  I'll  pass  there,  let  Tilly 
do  his  worst." 

He  immediately  ordered  a  small  party  of  horse  to 
view  the  ground,  and  to  bring  him  word  particularly 
how  high  the  bank  was  on  .each  side  and  at  the  point. 
"And  he  shall  have  fifty  dollars,"  says  the  king,  "that 
will  bring  me  word  how  deep  the  water  is."  I  asked 
his  Majesty  leave  to  let  me  go,  which  he  would  by  no 
means  allow  of;  but  as  the  party  was  drawing  out,  a 
sergeant  of  dragoons  told  the  king,  if  he  pleased  to 
let  him  go  disguised  as  a  boor,  he  would  bring  him  an 
account  of  everything  he  desired.  The  king  liked 
the  motion  well  enough,  and  the  fellow  being  very  well 
acquainted  with  the  country,  puts  on  a  ploughman's 
habit,  and  went  away  immediately  with  a  long  pole 
upon  his  shoulder.  The  horse  lay  all  this  while  in  the 
woods,  and  the  king  stood  undiscerned  by  the  enemy 
on  the  little  hill  aforesaid.  The  dragoon  with  his  long 
pole  comes  down  boldly  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  and 
calling  to.  the  sentinels  which  Tilly  had  placed  on  the 
other  bank,  talked  with  them,  asked  them  if  they  could 
not  help  him  over  the  river,  and  pretended  he -wanted 
to  come  to  them.  At  last  being  come  to  the  point 
where,  as  I  said,  the  river  makes  a  short  turn,  he  stands 
parleying  with  them  a  great  while,  and  sometimes,  pre- 
tending to  wade  over,  he  puts  his  long  pole  into  the 
water,  then  finding  it  pretty  shallow  he  pulls  off  his 
hose  and  goes  in,  still  thrusting  his  pole  in  before  him, 
till  being  gotten  up  to  his  middle,  he  could  reach 
beyond  him,  where  it  was  too  deep,  and  so  shaking  his 


94       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

head,  comes  back  again.  The  soldiers  on  the  other 
side,  laughing  at  him,  asked  him  if  he  could  swim  ? 
He  said,  "  No."  "  Why,  you  fool  you,"  says  one  of 
the  sentinels,  "  the  channel  of  the  river  is  twenty  feet 
deep."  "  How  do  you  know  that?"  says  the  dragoon. 
"Why, our  engineer,"  says  he,"  measured  it  yesterday." 
This  was  what  he  wanted,  but  not  yet  fully  satisfied, 
"Ay,  but,"  says  he,  "maybe  it  may  not  be  very  broad, 
and  if  one  of  you  would  wade  in  to  meet  me  till  I  could 
reach  you  with  my  pole,  I'd  give  him  half  a  ducat  to 
pull  me  over."  The  innocent  way  of  his  discourse  so 
deluded  the  soldiers,  that  one  of  them  immediately  strips 
and  goes  in  up  to  the  shoulders,  and  our  dragoon  goes 
in  on  this  side  to  meet  him ;  but  the  stream  took  t'other 
soldier  away,  and  he  being  a  good  swimmer,  came 
swimming  over  to  this  side.  The  dragoon  was  then 
in  a  great  deal  of  pain  for  fear  of  being  discovered,  and 
was  once  going  to  kill  the  fellow,  and  make  off;  but 
at  last  resolved  to  carry  on  the  humour,  and  having 
entertained  the  fellow  with  a  tale  of  a  tub,  about  the 
Swedes  stealing  his  oats,  the  fellow  being  a- cold  wanted 
to  be  gone,  and  he  as  willing  to  be  rid  of  him,  pre- 
tended to  be  very  sorry  he  could  not  get  over  the  river, 
and  so  makes  off. 

By  this,  however,  he  learned  both  the  depth  and 
breadth  of  the  channel,  the  bottom  and  nature  of  both 
shores,  and  everything  the  king  wanted  to  know.  We 
could  see  him  from  the  hill  by  our  glasses  very  plain, 
and  could  see  the  soldier  naked  with  him.  Says  the 
king,  "he  will  certainly  be  discovered  and  knocked 
on  the  head  from  the  other  side :  he  is  a  fool,"  says 
the  king,  "he  does  not  kill  the  fellow  and  run  off." 
But  when  the  dragoon  told  his  tale,  the  king  was 
extremely  well  satisfied  with  him,  gave  him  a  hundred 
dollars,  and  made  him  a  quartermaster  to  a  troop  of 
cuirassiers. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       95 

The  king  having  farther  examined  the  dragoon,  he 
gave  him  a  very  distinct  account  of  the  shore  and  the 
ground  on  this  side,  which  he  found  to  be  higher  than 
the  enemy's  by  ten  or  twelve  foot,  and  a  hard  gravel. 

Hereupon  the  king  resolves  to  pass  there,  and  in 
order  to  it  gives,  himself,  particular  directions  for  such 
a  bridge  as  I  believe  never  army  passed  a  river  on 
before  nor  since. 

His  bridge  was  only  loose  planks  laid  upon  large 
tressels  in  the  same  homely  manner  as  I  have  seen 
bricklayers  raise  a  low  scaffold  to  build  a  brick  wall ; 
the  tressels  were  made  higher  than  one  another  to 
answer  to  the  river  as  it  became  deeper  or  shallower, 
and  was  all  framed  and  fitted  before  any  appearance 
was  made  of  attempting  to  pass. 

When  all  was  ready  the  king  brings  his  army  down 
to  the  bank  of  the  river,  and  plants  his  cannon  as  the 
enemy  had  done,  some  here  and  some  there,  to  amuse 
them. 

At  night,  April  4th,  the  king  commanded  about 
2000  men  to  march  to  the  point,  and  to  throw  up 
a  trench  on  either  side,  and  quite  round  it  with  a 
battery  of  six  pieces  of  cannon  at  each  end,  besides 
three  small  mounts,  one  at  the  point  and  one  of  each 
side,  which  had  each  of  them  two  pieces  upon  them. 
This  work  was  begun  so  briskly  and  so  well  carried 
on,  the  king  firing  all  the  night  from  the  other  parts 
of  the  river,  that  by  daylight  all  the  batteries  at  the 
new  work  were  mounted,  the  trench  lined  with  2000 
musketeers,  and  all  the  utensils  of  the  bridge  lay  ready 
to  be  put  together. 

Now  the  Imperialists  discovered  the  design,  but  it 
was  too  late  to  hinder  it ;  the  musketeers  in  the  great 
trench,  and  the  five  new  batteries,  made  such  continual 
fire  that  the  other  bank,  which,  as  before,  lay  twelve 
feet  below  them,  was  too  hot  for  the  Imperialists ; 


g6       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

whereupon  Tilly,  to  be  provided  for  the  king  at  his 
coming  over,  falls  to  work  in  a  wood  right  against  the 
point,  and  raises  a  great  battery  for  twenty  pieces  of 
cannon,  with  a  breastwork  or  line,  as  near  the  river 
as  he  could,  to  cover  his  men,  thinking  that  when  the 
king  had  built  his  bridge  he  might  easily  beat  it  down 
with  his  cannon. 

But  the  king  had  doubly  prevented  him,  first  by 
laying  his  bridge  so  low  that  none  of  Tilly's  shot 
could  hurt  it ;  for  the  bridge  lay  not  above  half  a  foot 
above  the  water's  edge,  by  which  means  the  king, 
who  in  that  showed  himself  an  excellent  engineer,  had 
secured  it  from  any  batteries  to  be  made  within  the 
land,  and  the  angle  of  the  bank  secured  it  from  the 
remoter  batteries  on  the  other  side,  and  the  continual 
fire  of  the  cannon  and  small  shot  beat  the  Imperialists 
from  their  station  just  against  it,  they  having  no  works 
to  cover  them. 

And  in  the  second  place,  to  secure  his  passage  he 
sent  over  about  200  men,  and  after  that  200  more, 
who  had  orders  to  cast  up  a  large  ravelin  on  the  other 
bank,  just  where  he  designed  to  land  his  bridge.  This 
was  done  with  such  expedition  too,  that  it  was  finished 
before  night,  and  in  condition  to  receive  all  the  shot 
of  Tilly's  great  battery,  and  effectually  covered  his 
bridge.  While  this  was  doing  the  king  on  his  side 
lays  over  his  bridge.  Both  sides  wrought  hard  all 
day  and  all  night,  as  if  the  spade,  not  the  sword,  had 
been  to  decide  the  controversy,  and  that  he  had  got 
the  victory  whose  trenches  and  batteries  were  first 
ready.  In  the  meanwhile  the  cannon  and  musket 
bullets  flew  like  hail,  and  made  the  service  so  hot 
that  both  sides  had  enough  to  do  to  make  their  men 
stand  to  their  work.  The  king,  in  the  hottest  of  it, 
animated  his  men  by  his  presence,  and  Tilly,  to  give 
him  his  due,  did  the  same  ;  for  the  execution  was 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       97 

so  great,  and  so  many  officers  killed,  General  Altringer 
wounded,  and  two  sergeant-majors  killed,  that  at  last 
Tilly  himself  was  obliged  to  expose  himself,  and  to 
come  up  to  the  very  face  of  our  line  to  encourage  his 
men,  and  give  his  necessary  orders. 

And  here  about  one  o'clock,  much  about  the  time 
that  the  king's  brigade  and  works  were  finished,  and 
just  as  they  said  he  had  ordered  to  fall  on  upon  our 
ravelin  with  3000  foot,  was  the  brave  old  Tilly  slain 
with  a  musket  bullet  in  the  thigh.  He  was  carried  off 
to  Ingolstadt,  and  lived  some  days  after,  but  died  of  that 
wound  the  same  day  as  the  king  had  his  horse  shot 
under  him  at  the  siege  of  that  town. 

We  made  no  question  of  passing  the  river  here, 
having  brought  everything  so  forward,  and  with  such 
extraordinary  success ;  but  we  should  have  found  it  a 
very  hot  piece  of  work  if  Tilly  had  lived  one  day 
more,  and,  if  I  may  give  my  opinion  of  it,  having  seen 
Tilly's  battery  and  breastwork,  in  the  face  of  which 
we  must  have  passed  the  river,  I  must  say  that,  when- 
ever we  had  marched,  if  Tilly  had  fallen  in  with  his 
horse  and  foot,  placed  in  that  trench,  the  whole  army 
would  have  passed  as  much  danger  as  in  the  face 
of  a  strong  town  in  the  storming  a  counterscarp. 
The  king  himself,  when  he  saw  with  what  judgment 
Tilly  had  prepared  his  works,  and  what  danger  he 
must  have  run,  would  often  say  that  day's  success  was 
every  way  equal  to  the  victory  of  Leipsic. 

Tilly  being  hurt  and  carried  off,  as  if  the  soul  of  the 
army  had  been  lost,  they  began  to  draw  off.  The 
Duke  of  Bavaria  took  horse  and  rid  away  as  if  he  had 
fled  out  of  battle  for  his  life. 

The  other  generals,  with  a  little  more  caution,  as 
well  as  courage,  drew  off  by  degrees,  sending  their 
cannon  and  baggage  away  first,  and  leaving  some  to 
continue  firing  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  to  conceal 

G 


98       Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

their  retreat.  The  river  preventing  any  intelligence, 
we  knew  nothing  of  the  disaster  befallen  them  ;  and  the 
king,  who  looked  for  blows,  having  finished  his  bridge 
and  ravelin,  ordered  to  run  a  line  with  palisadoes  to 
take  in  more  ground  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  to  cover 
the  first  troops  he  should  send  over.  This  being  finished 
the  same  night,  the  king  sends  over  a  party  of  his  guards 
to  relieve  the  men  who  were  in  the  ravelin,  and  com- 
manded 600  musketeers  to  man  the  new  line  out  of 
the  Scots  brigade. 

Early  in  the  morning  a  small  party  of  Scots,  com- 
manded by  one  Captain  Forbes,  of  my  Lord  Reay's 
regiment,  were  sent  out  to  learn  something  of  the 
enemy,  the  king  observing  they  had  not  fired  all  night ; 
and  while  this  party  were  abroad,  the  army  stood  in 
battalia  ;  and  my  old  friend  Sir  John  Hepburn,  whom 
of  all  men  the  king  most  depended  upon  for  any 
desperate  service,  was  ordered  to  pass  the  bridge  with 
his  brigade,  and  to  draw  up  without  the  line,  with  com- 
mand to  advance  as  he  found  the  horse,  who  were  to 
second  him,  come  over. 

Sir  John  being  passed  without  the  trench,  meets 
Captain  Forbes  with  some  prisoners,  and  the  good 
news  of  the  enemy's  retreat.  He  sends  him  directly 
to  the  king,  who  was  by  this  time  at  the  head  of  his 
army,  in  full  battalia,  ready  to  follow  his  vanguard, 
expecting  a  hot  day's  work  of  it.  Sir  John  sends 
messenger  after  messenger  to  the  king,  entreating  him 
to  give  him  orders  to  advance ;  but  the  king  would 
not  suffer  him,  for  he  was  ever  upon  his  guard,  and 
would  not  venture  a  surprise  ;  so  the  army  continued  on 
this  side  the  Lech  all  day  and  the  next  night.  In  the 
morning  the  king  sent  for  me,  and  ordered  me  to  draw 
out  300  horse,  and  a  colonel  with  600  horse,  and  a 
colonel  with  800  dragoons,  and  ordered  us  to  enter  the 
wood  by  three  ways,  but  so  as  to  be  able  to  relieve 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier       99 

one  another  ;  and  then  ordered  Sir  John  Hepburn  with 
his  brigade  to  advance  to  the  edge  of  the  wood  to  secure 
our  retreat,  and  at  the  same  time  commanded  another 
brigade  of  foot  to  pass  the  bridge,  if  need  were,  to 
second  Sir  John  Hepburn,  so  warily  did  this  prudent 
general  proceed. 

We  advanced  with  our  horse  into  the  Bavarian 
camp,  which  we  found  forsaken.  The  plunder  of  it 
was  inconsiderable,  for  the  exceeding  caution  the  king 
had  used  gave  them  time  to  carry  off  all  their  baggage. 
We  followed  them  three  or  four  miles,  and  returned 
to  our  camp. 

I  confess  I  was  most  diverted  that  day  with  viewing 
the  works  which  Tilly  had  cast  up,  and  must  own 
again  that  had  he  not  been  taken  off  we  had  met  with 
as  desperate  a  piece  of  work  as  ever  was  attempted. 
The  next  day  the  rest  of  the  cavalry  came  up  to  us, 
commanded  by  Gustavus  Horn,  and  the  king  and  the 
whole  army  followed.  We  advanced  through  the  heart 
of  Bavaria,  took  Rain  at  the  first  summons,  and  several 
other  small  towns,  and  sat  down  before  Augsburg. 

Augsburg,  though  a  Protestant  city,  had  a  Popish 
Bavarian  garrison  in  it  of  above  5000  men,  com- 
manded by  a  Fugger,  a  great  family  in  Bavaria.  The 
governor  had  posted  several  little  parties  as  out-scouts 
at  the  distance  of  two  miles  and  a  half  or  three  miles 
from  the  town.  The  king,  at  his  coming  up  to  this 
town,  sends  me  with  my  little  troop  and  three  com- 
panies of  dragoons  to  beat  in  these  out-scouts.  The 
first  party  I  lighted  on  was  not  above  sixteen  men,  who 
had  made  a  small  barricado  cross  the  road,  and  stood 
resolutely  upon  their  guard.  I  commanded  the  dragoons 
to  alight  and  open  the  barricado,  which,  while  they 
resolutely  performed,  the  sixteen  men  gave  them  two 
volleys  of  their  muskets,  and  through  the  enclosures 
made  their  retreat  to  a  turnpike  about  a  quarter  of  a. 


ioo     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

mile  farther.  We  passed  their  first  traverse,  and 
coming  up  to  the  turnpike,  I  found  it  defended  by  200 
musketeers.  I  prepared  to  attack  them,  sending  word 
to  the  king  how  strong  the  enemy  was,  and  desired 
some  foot  to  be  sent  me.  My  dragoons  fell  on,  and 
though  the  enemy  made  a  very  hot  fire,  had  beat  them 
from  this  post  before  200  foot,  which  the  king  had 
sent  me,  had  come  up.  Being  joined  with  the  foot, 
I  followed  the  enemy,  who  retreated  fighting,  till  they 
came  under  the  cannon  of  a  strong  redoubt,  where  they 
drew  up,  and  I  could  see  another  body  of  foot  of  about 
300  join  them  out  of  the  works  ;  upon  which  I  halted, 
and  considering  I  was  in  view  of  the  town,  and  a  great 
way  from  the  army,  I  faced  about  and  began  to  march 
off.  As  we  marched  I  found  the  enemy  followed,  but 
kept  at  a  distance,  as  if  they  only  designed  to  observe 
me.  I  had  not  marched  far,  but  I  heard  a  volley  of 
small  shot,  answered  by  two  or  three  more,  which  I 
presently  apprehended  to  be  at  the  turnpike,  where  I 
had  left  a  small  guard  of  twenty-six  men  with  a  lieu- 
tenant. Immediately  I  detached  ioo  dragoons  to 
relieve  my  men  and  secure  my  retreat,  following  myself 
as  fast  as  the  foot  could  march.  The  lieutenant  sent 
me  back  word  the  post  was  taken  by  the  enemy,  and 
my  men  cut  off.  Upon  this  I  doubled  my  pace,  and 
when  I  came  up  I  found  it  as  the  lieutenant  said ;  for 
the  post  was  taken  and  manned  with  300  musketeers 
and  three  troops  of  horse.  By  this  time,  also,  I  found 
the  party  in  my  rear  made  up  towards  me,  so  that  I 
was  like  to  be  charged  in  a  narrow  place  both  in 
front  and  rear. 

I  saw  there  was  no  remedy  but  with  all  my  force  to 
fall  upon  that  party  before  me,  and  so  to  break  through 
before  those  from  the  town  could  come  up  with  me ; 
wherefore,  commanding  my  dragoons  to  alight,  I  ordered 
them  to  fall  on  upon  the  foot.  Their  horse  were  drawn 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     101 

up  in  an  enclosed  Held  on  one  side  of  the  road,  a  great 
ditch  securing  the  other  side,  so  that  they  thought  if 
I  charged  the  foot  in  front  they  would  fall  upon  my 
flank,  while  those  behind  would  charge  my  rear  ;  and, 
indeed,  had  the  other  come  in  time,  they  had  cut  me 
off.  My  dragoons  made  three  fair  charges  on  their 
foot,  but  were  received  with  so  much  resolution  and 
so  brisk  a  fire,  that  they  were  beaten  off,  and  sixteen 
men  killed.  Seeing  them  so  rudely  handled,  and  the 
horse  ready  to  fall  in,  I  relieved  them  with  100 
musketeers,  and  they  renewed  the  attack  ;  at  the  same 
time,  with  my  troop  of  horse,  flanked  on  both  wings 
with  fifty  musketeers,  I  faced  their  horse,  but  did  not 
offer  to  charge  them.  The  case  grew  now  desperate, 
and  the  enemy  behind  were  just  at  my  heels  with  near 
600  men.  The  captain  who  commanded  the  musketeers 
who  flanked  my  horse  came  up  to  me ;  says  he,  "  If 
we  do  not  force  this  pass  all  will  be  lost ;  if  you  will 
draw  out  your  troop  and  twenty  of  my  foot,  and  fall 
in,  I'll  engage  to  keep  off  the  horse  with  the  rest." 
"  With  all  my  heart,"  says  I. 

Immediately  I  wheeled  off  my  troop,  and  a  small 
party  of  the  musketeers  followed  me,  and  fell  in  with 
the  dragoons  and  foot,  who,  seeing  the  danger  too  as 
well  as  I,  fought  like  madmen.  The  foot  at  the  turn- 
pike were  not  able  to  hinder  our  breaking  through, 
so  we  made  our  way  out,  killing  about  150  of  them, 
and  put  the  rest  into  confusion. 

But  now  was  I  in  as  great  a  difficulty  as  before  how 
to  fetch  off  my  brave  captain  of  foot,  for  they  charged 
home  upon  him.  He  defended  himself  with  extra- 
ordinary gallantry,  having  the  benefit  of  a  piece  of  a 
hedge  to  cover  him,  but  he  lost  half  his  men,  and  was 
just  upon  the  point  of  being  defeated  when  the  king, 
informed  by  a  soldier  that  escaped  from  the  turnpike, 
one  of  twenty-six,  had  sent  a  party  of  600  dragoons  to 


IO2     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

bring  me  off;  these  came  upon  the  spur,  and  joined 
with  me  just  as  I  had  broke  through  the  turnpike.  The 
enemy's  foot  rallied  behind  their  horse,  and  by  this 
time  their  other  party  was  come  in ;  but  seeing  our 
relief  they  drew  off  together. 

I  lost  above  100  men  in  these  skirmishes,  and  killed 
them  about  180.  We  secured  the  turnpike,  and  placed 
a  company  of  foot  there  with  100  dragoons,  and 
came  back  well  beaten  to  the  army.  The  king,  to  pre- 
vent such  uncertain  skirmishes,  advanced  the  next  day  in 
view  of  the  town,  and,  according  to  his  custom,  sits  down 
with  his  whole  army  within  cannon-shot  of  their  walls. 

The  king  won  this  great  city  by  force  of  words,  for 
by  two  or  three  messages  and  letters  to  and  from  the 
citizens,  the  town  was  gained,  the  garrison  not  daring  to 
defend  them  against  their  wills.  His  Majesty  made 
his  public  entrance  into  the  city  on  the  I4th  of  April, 
and  receiving  the  compliments  of  the  citizens,  advanced 
immediately  to  Ingolstadt,  which  is  accounted,  and 
really  is,  the  strongest  town  in  all  these  parts. 

The  town  had  a  very  strong  garrison  in  it,  and  the 
Duke  of  Bavaria  lay  entrenched  with  his  army  under 
the  walls  of  it,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  The 
king,  who  never  loved  long  sieges,  having  viewed  the 
town,  and  brought  his  army  within  musket-shot  of  it, 
called  a  council  of  war,  where  it  was  the  king's  opinion, 
in  short,  that  the  town  would  lose  him  more  than  'twas 
worth,  and  therefore  he  resolved  to  raise  his  siege. 

Here  the  king  going  to  view  the  town  had  his 
horse  shot  with  a  cannon-bullet  from  the  works,  which 
tumbled  the  king  and  his  horse  over  one  another,  that 
everybody  thought  he  had  been  killed  ;  but  he  received 
no  hurt  at  all.  That  very  minute,  as  near  as  could  be 
learnt,  General  Tilly  died  in  the  town  of  the  shot  he 
received  on  the  bank  of  the  Lech,  as  aforesaid. 

I  was  not  in  the  camp  when  the  king  was  hurt,  for 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     103 

the  king  had  sent  almost  all  the  horse  and  dragoons, 
under  Gustavus  Horn,  to  face  the  Duke  of  Bavaria's 
camp,  and  after  that  to  plunder  the  country  ;  which 
truly  was  a  work  the  soldiers  were  very  glad  of,  for 
it  was  very  seldom  they  had  that  liberty  given  them, 
and  they  made  very  good  use  of  it  when  it  was,  for 
the  country  of  Bavaria  was  rich  and  plentiful,  having 
seen  no  enemy  before  during  the  whole  war. 

The  army  having  left  the  siege  of  Ingolstadt,  pro- 
ceeds to  take  in  the  rest  of  Bavaria.  Sir  John 
Hepburn,  with  three  brigades  of  foot,  and  Gustavus 
Horn,  with  3000  horse  and  dragoons,  went  to  the 
Landshut,  and  took  it  the  same  day.  The  garrison 
was  all  horse,  and  gave  us  several  camisadoes  at  our 
approach,  in  one  of  which  I  lost  two  of  my  troops, 
but  when  we  had  beat  them  into  close  quarters  they 
presently  capitulated.  The  general  got  a  great  sum  of 
money  of  the  town,  besides  a  great  many  presents  to 
the  officers.  And  from  thence  the  king  went  on  to 
Munich,  the  Duke  of  Bavaria's  court.  Some  of  the 
general  officers  would  fain  have  had  the  plundering  of 
the  duke's  palace,  but  the  king  was  too  generous.  The 
city  paid  him  400,000  dollars  ;  and  the  duke's 
magazine  was  there  seized,  in  which  was  140  pieces 
of  cannon,  and  small  arms  for  above  20,000  men. 
The  great  chamber  of  the  duke's  rarities  was  preserved, 
by  the  king's  special  order,  with  a  great  deal  of  care. 
I  expected  to  have  stayed  here  some  time,  and  to  have 
taken  a  very  exact  account  of  this  curious  laboratory  ; 
but  being  commanded  away,  I  had  no  time,  and  the 
fate  of  the  war  never  gave  me  opportunity  to  see  it 
again. 

The  Imperialists,  under  the  command  of  Commissary 
Osta,  had  besieged  Biberach,  an  Imperial  city  not  very 
well  fortified  ;  and  the  inhabitants  being  under  the 
Swedes'  protection,  defended  themselves  as  well  as  they 


IO4     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

could,  but  were  in  great  danger,  and  sent  several 
expresses  to  the  king  for  help. 

The  king  immediately  detaches  a  strong  body  of 
horse  and  foot  to  relieve  Biberach,  and  would  be  the 
commander  himself.  I  marched  among  the  horse,  but 
the  Imperialists  saved  us  the  labour  ;  for  the  news  of 
the  king's  coming  frighted  away  Osta,  that  he  left 
Biberach,  and  hardly  looked  behind  him  till  he  got  up 
to  the  Bodensee,  on  the  confines  of  Switzerland. 

At  our  return  from  this  expedition  the  king  had  the 
first  news  of  Wallenstein's  approach,  who,  on  the  death 
of  Count  Tilly,  being  declared  generalissimo  of  the 
emperor's  forces,  had  played  the  tyrant  in  Bohemia, 
and  was  now  advancing  with  60,000  men,  as  they 
reported,  to  relieve  the  Duke  of  Bavaria. 

The  king,  therefore,  in  order  to  be^in  a  posture  to 
receive  this  great  general,  resolves  to  quit  Bavaria,  and 
to  expect  him  on  the  frontiers  of  Franconia.  And 
because  he  knew  the  Nurembergers  for  their  kindness 
to  him  would  be  the  first  sacrifice,  he  resolved  to 
defend  that  city  against  him  whatever  it  cost. 

Nevertheless  he  did  not  leave  Bavaria  without  a 
defence ;  but,  on  the  one  hand,  he  left  Sir  John  Baner 
with  10,000  men  about  Augsburg,  and  the  Duke  of 
Saxe- Weimar  with  another  like  army  about  Ulm  and 
Meningen,  with  orders  so  to  direct  their  march  as  that 
they  might  join  him  upon  any  occasion  in  a  few  days. 

We  encamped  about  Nuremberg  the  middle  of  June. 
The  army,  after  so  many  detachments,  was  not  above 
19,000  men.  The  Imperial  army,  joined  with  the 
Bavarian,  were  not  so  numerous  as  was  reported,  but 
were  really  60,000  men.  The  king,  not  strong  enough 
to  fight,  yet,  as  he  used  to  say,  was  strong  enough  not 
to  be  forced  to  fight,  formed  his  camp  so  under  the 
cannon  of  Nuremberg  that  there  was  no  besieging  the 
town  but  they  must  besiege  him  too  ;  and  he  fortified 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     105 

his  camp  in  so  formidable  a  manner  that  Wallenstein 
never  durst  attack  him.  On  the  joth  of  June  Wallen- 
stein's  troops  appeared,  and  on  the  5th  of  July  en- 
camped close  by  the  king,  and  posted  themselves  not 
on  the  Bavarian  side,  but  between  the  king  and  his 
own  friends  of  Schwaben  and  Frankenland,  in  order  to 
intercept  his  provisions,  and,  as  they  thought,  to  starve 
him  out  of  his  camp. 

Here  they  lay  to  see,  as  it  were,  who  could  subsist 
longest.  The  king  was  strong  in  horse,  for  we  had 
full  8000  horse  and  dragoons  in  the  army,  and  this 
gave  us  great  advantage  in  the  several  skirmishes  we 
had  with  the  enemy.  The  enemy  had  possession  of 
the  whole  country,  and  had  taken  effectual  care  to 
furnish  their  army  with  provisions ;  they  placed  their 
guards  in  such  excellent  order,  to  secure  their  convoys, 
that  their  waggons  went  from  stage  to  stage  as  quiet  as 
in  a  time  of  peace,  and  were  relieved  every  five  miles 
by  parties  constantly  posted  on  the  road.  And  thus 
the  Imperial  general  sat  down  by  us,  not  doubting  but 
he  should  force  the  king  either  to  fight  his  way  through 
on  very  disadvantageous  terms,  or  to  rise  for  want  of 
provisions,  and  leave  the  city  of  Nuremberg  a  prey  to 
his  army ;  for  he  had  vowed  the  destruction  of  the 
city,  and  to  make  it  a  second  Magdeburg. 

But  the  king,  who  was  not  to  be  easily  deceived, 
had  countermined  all  Wallenstein's  designs.  He  had 
passed  his  honour  to  the  Nurembergers  that  he  would 
not  leave  them,  and  they  had  undertaken  to  victual 
his  army,  and  secure  him  from  want,  which  they  did  so 
effectually,  that  he  had  no  occasion  to  expose  his  troops 
to  any  hazard  or  fatigues  for  convoys  or  forage  on  any 
account  whatever. 

The  city  of  Nuremberg  is  a  very  rich  and  populous 
city,  and  the  king  being  very  sensible  of  their  danger, 
had  given  his  word  for  their  defence.  And  when 


io6     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

they,  being  terrified  at  the  threats  of  the  Imperialists, 
sent  their  deputies  to  beseech  the  king  to  take  care  of 
them,  he  sent  them  word  he  would,  and  be  besieged 
with  them.  They,  on  the  other  hand,  laid  in  such 
stores  of  all  sorts  of  provision,  both  for  men  and  horse, 
that  had  Wallenstein  lain  before  it  six  months  longer, 
there  would  have  been  no  scarcity.  Every  private 
house  was  a  magazine,  the  camp  was  plentifully  supplied 
with  all  manner  of  provisions,  and  the  market  always 
full,  and  as  cheap  as  in  times  of  peace.  The  magis- 
trates were  so  careful,  and  preserved  so  excellent  an 
order  in  the  disposal  of  all  sorts  of  provision,  that  no 
engrossing  of  corn  could  be  practised,  for  the  prices 
were  every  day  directed  at  the  town-house ;  and  if 
any  man  offered  to  demand  more  money  for  corn  than 
the  stated  price,  he  could  not  sell,  because  at  the  town 
store-house  you  might  buy  cheaper.  Here  are  two 
instances  of  good  and  bad  conduct :  the  city  of  Magde- 
burg had  been  entreated  by  the  king  to  settle  funds, 
and  raise  money  for  their  provision  and  security,  and  to 
hare  a  sufficient  garrison  to  defend  them,  but  they 
made  difficulties,  either  to  raise  men  for  themselves,  or 
to  admit  the  king's  troops  to  assist  them,  for  fear  of  the 
charge  of  maintaining  them  ;  and  this  was  the  cause  of 
the  city's  ruin. 

The  city  of  Nuremberg  opened  their  arms  to  receive 
the  assistance  proffered  by  the  Swedes,  and  their  purses 
to  defend  their  town  and  common  cause ;  and  this  was 
the  saving  them  absolutely  from  destruction.  The 
rich  burghers  and  magistrates  kept  open  houses,  where 
the  officers  of  the  army  were  always  welcome ;  and 
the  council  of  the  city  took  such  care  of  the  poor  that 
there  was  no  complaining  nor  disorders  in  the  whole 
city.  There  is  no  doubt  but  it  cost  the  city  a  great 
deal  of  money  ;  but  I  never  saw  a  public  charge  borne 
with  so  much  cheerfulness,  nor  managed  with  so  much 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     107 

prudence  and  conduct  in  my  life.  The  city  fed  above 
50,000  mouths  every  day,  including  their  own  poor, 
besides  themselves ;  and  yet  when  the  king  had  lain 
thus  three  months,  and  finding  his  armies  longer  in 
coming  up  than  he  expected,  asked  the  burgrave  how 
their  magazines  held  out,  he  answered,  they  desired 
his  Majesty  not  to  hasten  things  for  them,  for  they 
could  maintain  themselves  and  him  twelve  months 
longer  if  there  was  occasion.  This  plenty  kept  both  the 
army  and  city  in  good  health,  as  well  as  in  good  heart ; 
whereas  nothing  was  to  be  had  of  us  but  blows,  for 
we  fetched  nothing  from  without  our  works,  nor  had 
no  business  without  the  line  but  to  interrupt  the  enemy. 

The  manner  of  the  king's  encampment  deserves  a 
particular  chapter.  He  was  a  complete  surveyor  and  a 
master  in  fortification,  not  to  be  outdone  by  anybody. 
He  had  posted  his  army  in  the  suburbs  of  the  town, 
and  drawn  lines  round  the  whole  circumference,  so  that 
he  begirt  the  whole  city  with  his  army.  His  works 
were  large,  the  ditch  deep,  flanked  with  innumerable 
bastions,  ravelins,  horn-works,  forts,  redoubts,  batteries, 
and  palisadoes,  the  incessant  work  of  8000  men  for 
about  fourteen  days  ;  besides  that,  the  king  was  adding 
something  or  other  to  it  every  day,  and  the  very 
posture  of  his  camp  was  enough  to  tell  a  bigger  army 
han  Wallenstein's  that  he  was  not  to  be  assaulted  in 
his  trenches. 

The  king's  design  appeared  chiefly  to  be  the  pre- 
servation of  the  city ;  but  that  was  not  all.  He  had 
three  armies  acting  abroad  in  three  several  places. 
Gustavus  Horn  was  on  the  Moselle,  the  chancellor 
Oxenstiern  about  Mentz,  Cologne,  and  the  Rhine,  Duke 
William  and  Duke  Bernhard,  together  with  General 
Baner,  in  Bavaria.  And  though  he  designed  they 
should  all  join  him,  and  had  wrote  to  them  all  to  that 
purpose,  yet  he  did  not  hasten  them,  knowing  that 


io8     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

while  he  kept  the  main  army  at  bay  about  Nuremberg, 
they  would,  without  opposition,  reduce  those  several 
countries  they  were  acting  in  to  his  power.  This  oc- 
casioned his  lying  longer  in  the  camp  at  Nuremberg  than 
he  would  have  done,  and  this  occasioned  his  giving  the 
Imperialists  so  many  alarms  by  his  strong  parties  of 
horse,  of  which  he  was  well  provided,  that  they  might 
not  be  able  to  make  any  considerable  detachments  for 
the  relief  of  their  friends.  And  here  he  showed  his 
mastership  in  the  war,  for  by  this  means  his  conquests 
went  on  as  effectually  as  if  he  had  been  abroad  himself. 

In  the  meantime  it  was  not  to  be  expected  two  such 
armies  should  lie  long  so  near  without  some  action.  The 
Imperial  army,  being  masters  of  the  field,  laid  the  country 
for  twenty  miles  round  Nuremberg  in  a  manner  desolate. 
What  the  inhabitants  could  carry  away  had  been  before 
secured  in  such  strong  towns  as  had  garrisons  to  protect 
them,  and  what  was  left  the  hungry  Crabats  devoured 
or  set  on  fire ;  but  sometimes  they  were  met  with  by 
our  men,  who  often  paid  them  home  for  it.  There 
had  passed  several  small  rencounters  between  our 
parties  and  theirs ;  and  as  it  falls  out  in  such  cases, 
sometimes  one  side,  sometimes  the  other,  got  the  better. 
But  I  have  observed  there  never  was  any  party  sent  out 
by  the  king's  special  appointment  but  always  came 
home  with  victory. 

The  first  considerable  attempt,  as  I  remember,  was 
made  on  a  convoy  of  ammunition.  The  party  sent  out 
was  commanded  by  a  Saxon  colonel,  and  consisted  of 
1000  horse  and  500  dragoons,  who  burnt  above  600 
waggons  loaded  with  ammunition  and  stores  for  the 
army,  besides  taking  about  2000  muskets,  which  they 
brought  back  to  the  army. 

The  latter  end  of  July  the  king  received  advice  that 
the  Imperialists  had  formed  a  magazine  for  provision  at 
a  town  called  Freynstat,  twenty  miles  from  Nuremberg. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     109 

Hither  all  the  booty  and  contributions  raised  in  the 
Upper  Palatinate,  and  parts  adjacent,  was  brought  and 
laid  up  as  in  a  place  of  security,  a  garrison  of  600 
men  being  placed  to  defend  it;  and  when  a  quantity  of 
provisions  was  got  together,  convoys  were  appointed  to 
fetch  it  off. 

The  king  was  resolved,  if  possible,  to  take  or  destroy 
this  magazine ;  and  sending  for  Colonel  Dubalt,  a 
Swede,  and  a  man  of  extraordinary  conduct,  he  tells 
him  his  design,  and  withal  that  he  must  be  the  man  to 
put  it  in  execution,  and  ordered  him  to  take  what  forces 
he  thought  convenient.  The  colonel,  who  knew  the 
town  very  well,  and  the  country  about  it,  told  his 
Majesty  he  would  attempt  it  with  all  his  heart ;  but  he 
was  afraid  'twould  require  some  foot  to  make  the  attack. 
"  But  we  can't  stay  for  that,"  says  the  king ;  "you  must 
then  take  some  dragoons  with  you ; "  and  immediately  the 
king  called  for  me.  I  was  just  coming  up  the  stairs  as 
the  king's  page  was  come  out  to  inquire  for  me,  so  I  went 
immediately  in  to  the  king.  "  Here's  a  piece  of  hot 
work  for  you,"  says  the  king,  "  Dubalt  will  tell  it  you ; 
go  together  and  contrive  it." 

We  immediately  withdrew,  and  the  colonel  told  me 
the  design,  and  what  the  king  and  he  had  discoursed ; 
that,  in  his  opinion,  foot  would  be  wanted:  but  the 
king  had  declared  there  was  no  time  for  the  foot  to 
march,  and  had  proposed  dragoons.  I  told  him,  I 
thought  dragoons  might  do  as  well ;  so  we  agreed 
to  take  1600  horse  and  400  dragoons.  The  king, 
impatient  in  his  design,  came  into  the  room  to  us  to 
know  what  we  had  resolved  on,  approved  our  measures, 
gave  us  orders  immediately;  and,  turning  to  me,  "You 
shall  command  the  dragoons,"  says  the  king,  "  but 
Dubalt  must  be  general  in  this  case,  for  he  knows  the 
country."  "  Your  Majesty,"  said  I,  "  shall  be  always 
served  by  me  in  any  figure  you  please."  The  king 


no     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

wished  us  good  speed,  and  hurried  us  away  the  same 
afternoon,  in  order  to  come  toxthe  place  in  time.  We 
marched  slowly  on  because  of  the  carriages  we  had 
with  us,  and  came  to  Freynstat  about  one  o'clock  in 
the  night  perfectly  undiscovered.  The  guards  were  so 
negligent,  that  we  came  to  the  very  port  before  they 
had  notice  of  us,  and  a  sergeant  with  twelve  dragoons 
thrust  in  upon  the  out-sentinels,  and  killed  them  with- 
out noise. 

Immediately  ladders  were  placed  to  the  half-moon 
which  defended  the  gate,  which  the  dragoons  mounted 
and  carried  in  a  trice,  about  twenty-eight  men  being 
cut  in  pieces  within.  As  soon  as  the  ravelin  was 
taken,  they  burst  open  the  gate,  at  which  I  entered  at 
the  head  of  200  dragoons,  and  seized  the  drawbridge. 
By  this  time  the  town  was  in  alarm,  and  the  drums 
beat  to  arms,  but  it  was  too  late,  for  by  the  help  of 
a  petard  we  broke  open  the  gate,  and  entered  the  town. 
The  garrison  made  an  obstinate  fight  for  about  half- 
an-hour,  but  our  men  being  all  in,  and  three  troops  of 
horse  dismounted  coming  to  our  assistance  with  their 
carabines,  the  town  was  entirely  mastered  by  three  of 
the  clock,  and  guards  set  to  prevent  anybody  running 
to  give  notice  to  the  enemy.  There  were  about  200 
of  the  garrison  killed,  and  the  rest  taken  prisoners. 
The  town  being  thus  secured,  the  gates  were  opened, 
and  Colonel  Dubalt  came  in  with  the  horse. 

The  guards  being  set,  we  entered  the  magazine, 
where  we  found  an  incredible  quantity  of  all  sorts  of 
provision.  There  was  1 50  tons  of  bread,  8000  sacks 
of  meal,  4000  sacks  of  oats,  and  of  other  provisions 
in  proportion.  We  caused  as  much  of  it  as  could  be 
loaded  to  be  brought  away  in  such  waggons  and  car- 
riages as  we  found,  and  set  the  rest  on  fire,  town  and 
all.  We  stayed  by  it  till  we  saw  it  past  a  possibility 
of  being  saved,  and  then  drew  off  with  800  waggons, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     1 1 1 

which  we  found  in  the  place,  most  of  which  we  loaded 
with  bread,  meal,  and  oats.  While  we  were  doing 
this  we  sent  a  party  of  dragoons  into  the  fields,  who 
met  us  again  as  we  came  out,  wiih  above  1000  head 
of  black  cattle,  besides  sheep. 

Our  next  care  was  to  bring  this  booty  home  without 
meeting  with  the  enemy,  to  secure  which,  the  colonel 
immediately  despatched  an  express  to  the  king,  to  let 
him  know  of  our  success,  and  to  desire  a  detachment 
might  be  made  to  secure  our  retreat,  being  charged  with 
so  much  plunder. 

And  it  was  no  more  than  need;  for  though  we  had 
used  all  the  diligence  possible  to  prevent  any  notice, 
yet  somebody,  more  forward  than  ordinary,  had  escaped 
away,  and  carried  the  news  of  it  to  the  Imperial  army. 
The  general,  upon  this  bad  news,  detaches  Major- 
General  Sparr  with  a  body  of  6000  men  to  cut  off  our 
retreat.  The  king,  who  had  notice  of  this  detachment, 
marches  out  in  person  with  3000  men  to  wait  upon 
General  Sparr.  All  this  was  the  account  of  one  day. 
The  king  met  General  Sparr  at  the  moment  when  his 
troops  were  divided,  fell  upon  them,  routed  one  part 
of  them,  and  the  rest  in  a  few  hours  after,  killed  them 
1000  men,  and  took  the  general  prisoner. 

In  the  interval  of  this  action  we  came  safe  to  the 
camp  with  our  booty,  which  was  very  considerable, 
and  v/ould  have  supplied  our  whole  army  for  a  month. 
Thus  we  feasted  at  the  enemy's  cost,  and  beat  them 
into  the  bargain. 

The  king  gave  all  the  live  cattle  to  the  Nurember- 
gers,  who,  though  they  had  really  no  want  of  provisions, 
yet  fresh  meat  was  not  so  plentiful  as  such  provisions 
which  were  stored  up  in  vessels  and  laid  by. 

After  this  skirmish  we  had  the  country  more  at 
command  than  before,  and  daily  fetched  in  fresh  pro- 
visions and  forage  in  the  fields. 


ii2     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  two  armies  had  now  lain  a  long  time  in  sight 
of  one  another,  and  daily  skirmishes  had  considerably 
weakened  them ;  and  the  king,  beginning  to  be  im- 
patient, hastened  the  advancement  of  his  friends  to  join 
him,  in  which  also  they  were  not  backward ;  but  having 
drawn  together  their  forces  from  several  parts,  and  all 
joined  the  chancellor  Oxenstiern,  news  came,  the 
1 5th  of  August,  that  they  were  in  full  march  to  join  us ; 
and  being  come  to  a  small  town  called  Brock,  the 
king  went  out  of  the  camp  with  about  1000  horse  to 
view  them.  I  went  along  with  the  horse,  and  the  list 
of  August  saw  the  review  of  all  the  armies  together, 
which  were  30,000  men,  in  extraordinary  equipage, 
old  soldiers,  and  commanded  by  officers  of  the  greatest 
conduct  and  experience  in  the  world.  There  was  the 
rich  chancellor  of  Sweden,  who  commanded  as  general; 
Gustavus  Horn  and  John  Baner,  both  Swedes  and 
old  generals;  Duke  William  and  Duke  Bernhard  of 
Weimar;  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse-Cassel,  the  Palatine 
of  Birkenfelt,  and  abundance  of  princes  and  lords  of  the 
empire. 

The  armies  being  joined,  the  king,  who  was  now  a 
match  for  Wallenstein,  quits  his  camp  and  draws  up  in 
battalia  before  the  Imperial  trenches :  but  the  scene 
was  changed.  Wallenstein  was  no  more  able  to  fight 
now  than  the  king  was  before;  but,  keeping  within 
his  trenches,  stood  upon  his  guard.  The  king  coming 
up  close  to  his  works,  plants  batteries,  and  cannonaded 
him  in  his  very  camp.  The  Imperialists,  finding  the 
king  press  upon  them,  retreat  into  a  woody  country 
about  three  leagues,  and,  taking  possession  of  an  old 
ruined  castle,  posted  their  army  behind  it. 

This  old  castle  they  fortified,  and  placed  a  very 
strong  guard  there.  The  king,  having  viewed  the 
place,  though  it  was  a  very  strong  post,  resolved  to 
attack  it  with  the  whole  right  wing.  The  attack  was 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     113 

made  with  a  great  deal  of  order  and  resolution,  the  king 
leading  the  first  party  on  with  sword  in  hand,  and  the 
fight  was  maintained  on  both  sides  with  the  utmost 
gallantry  and  obstinacy  all  the  day  and  the  next  night 
too,  for  the  cannon  and  musket  never  gave  over  till 
the  morning;  but  the  Imperialists  having  the  advantage 
of  the  hill,  of  their  works  and  batteries,  and  being  con- 
tinually relieved,  and  the  Swedes  naked,  without  cannon 
or  works,  the  post  was  maintained,  and  the  king,  finding 
it  would  cost  him  too  much  blood,  drew  off  in  the 
morning. 

This  was  the  famous  fight  at  Altemberg,  where 
the  Imperialists  boasted  to  have  shown  the  world  the 
King  of  Sweden  was  not  invincible.  They  call  it  the 
victory  at  Altemberg ;  'tis  true  the  king  failed  in  his 
attempt  of  carrying  their  works,  but  there  was  so  little 
of  a  victory  in  it,  that  the  Imperial  general  thought  fit 
not  to  venture  a  second  brush,  but  to  draw  off  their 
army  as  soon  as  they  could  to  a  safer  quarter. 

I  had  no  share  in  this  attack,  very  few  of  the  horse 
being  in  the  action,  but  my  comrade,  who  was  always 
among  the  Scots  volunteers,  was  wounded  and  taken 
prisoner  by  the  enemy.  They  used  him  very  civilly, 
and  the  king  and  Wallenstein  straining  courtesies  with 
one  another,  the  king  released  Major- General  Sparr 
without  ransom,  and  the  Imperial  general  sent  home 
Colonel  Tortenson,  a  Swede,  and  sixteen  volunteer 
gentlemen,  who  were  taken  in  the  heat  of  the  action, 
among  whom  my  captain  was  one. 

The  king  lay  fourteen  days  facing  the  Imperial 
army,  and  using  all  the  stratagems  possible  to  bring 
them  to  a  battle,  but  to  no  purpose,  during  which  time 
we  had  parties  continually  out,  and  very  often  skir- 
mishes with  the  enemy. 

I  had  a  command  of  one  of  these  parties  in  an 
adventure,  wherein  I  got  no  booty,  nor  much  honour. 


H4     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  king  had  received  advice  of  a  convoy  of  provisions 
which  was  to  come  to  the  enemy's  camp  from  the 
Upper  Palatinate,  and  having  a  great  mind  to  surprise 
them,  he  commanded  us  to  waylay  them  with  1 200 
horse,  and  800  dragoons.  I  had  exact  directions  given 
me  of  the  way  they  were  to  come,  and  posting  my 
horse  in  a  village  a  little  out  of  the  road,  I  lay  with 
my  dragoons  in  a  wood,  by  which  they  were  to  pass 
by  break  of  day.  The  enemy  appeared  with  their 
convoy,  and  being  very  wary,  their  out-scouts  dis- 
covered us  in  the  wood,  and  fired  upon  the  sentinel  I 
had  posted  in  a  tree  at  the  entrance  of  the  wood. 
Finding  myself  discovered,  I  would  have  retreated 
to  the  village  where  my  horse  were  posted,  but  in  a 
moment  the  wood  was  skirted  with  the  enemy's  horse, 
and  looo  commanded  musketeers  advanced  to  beat 
me  out.  In  this  pickle  I  sent  away  three  mes- 
sengers one  after  another  for  the  horse,  who  were 
within  two  miles  of  me,  to  advance  to  my  relief;  but 
all  my  messengers  fell  into  the  enemy's  hands.  Four 
hundred  of  my  dragoons  on  foot,  whom  I  had  placed 
at  a  little  distance  before  me,  stood  to  their  work,  and 
beat  off  two  charges  of  the  enemy's  foot  with  some 
loss  on  both  sides.  Meantime  200  of  my  men  faced 
about,  and  rushing  out  of  the  wood,  broke  through 
a  party  of  the  enemy's  horse,  who  stood  to  watch 
our  coming  out.  I  confess  I  was  exceedingly  sur- 
prised at  it,  thinking  those  fellows  had  done  it  to 
make  their  escape,  or  else  were  gone  over  to  the 
enemy ;  and  my  men  were  so  discouraged  at  it,  that 
they  began  to  look  about  which  way  to  run  to  save 
themselves,  and  were  just  upon  the  point  of  disbanding 
to  shift  for  themselves,  when  one  of  the  captains  called 
to  me  aloud  to  beat  a  parley  and  treat.  I  made  no 
answer,  but,  as  if  I  had  not  heard  him,  immediately 
gave  the  word  for  all  the  captains  to  come  together. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     115 

The  consultation  was  but  short,  for  the  musketeers 
were  advancing  to  a  third  charge,  with  numbers  which 
we  were  not  likely  to  deal  with.  In  short,  we  re- 
solved to  beat  a  parley,  and  demand  quarter,  for  that 
was  all  we  could  expect,  when  on  a  sudden  the  body 
of  horse  I  had  posted  in  the  village,  being  directed  by 
the  noise,  had  advanced  to  relieve  me,  if  they  saw 
occasion,  and  had  met  the  200  dragoons,  who  guided 
them  directly  to  the  spot  where  they  had  broke 
through,  and  all  together  fell  upon  the  horse  of  the 
enemy,  who  were  posted  on  that  side,  and,  mastering 
them  before  they  could  be  relieved,  cut  them  all  to 
pieces  and  brought  me  off.  Under  the  shelter  of  this 
party,  we  made  good  our  retreat  to  the  village,  but  we 
lost  above  300  men,  and  were  glad  to  make  off  from 
the  village  too,  for  the  enemy  were  very  much  too  strong 
for  us. 

Returning  thence  towards  the  camp,  we  fell  foul 
with  200  Crabats,  who  had  been  upon  the  plundering 
account.  We  made  ourselves  some  amends  upon 
them  for  our  former  loss,  for  we  showed  them  no 
mercy ;  but  our  misfortunes  were  not  ended,  for  we 
had  but  just  despatched  those  Crabats  when  we  fell  in 
with  3000  Imperial  horse,  who,  on  the  expectation  of 
the  aforesaid  convoy,  were  sent  out  to  secure  them. 

All  I  could  do  could  not  persuade  my  men  to  stand 
their  ground  against  this  party  ;  so  that  finding  they 
would  run  away  in  confusion,  I  agreed  to  make  off, 
and  facing  to  the  right,  we  went  over  a  large  common 
a  full  trot,  till  at  last  fear,  which  always  increases  in  a 
flight,  brought  us  to  a  plain  flight,  the  enemy  at  our 
heels.  I  must  confess  I  was  never  so  mortified  in  my 
life ;  'twas  to  no  purpose  to  turn  head,  no  man  would 
stand  by  us ;  we  run  for  life,  and  a  great  many  we  left 
by  the  way  who  were  either  wounded  by  the  enemy's 
shot,  or  else  could  not  keep  race  with  us. 


n6     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

At  last,  having  got  over  the  common,  which  was 
near  two  miles,  we  came  to  a  lane  ;  one  of  our  captains, 
a  Saxon  by  country,  and  a  gentleman  of  a  good  for- 
tune, alighted  at  the  entrance  of  the  lane,  and  with  a 
bold  heart  faced  about,  shot  his  own  horse,  and  called 
his  men  to  stand  by  him  and  defend  the  lane.  Some 
of  his  men  halted,  and  we  rallied  about  600  men, 
which  we  posted  as  well  as  we  could,  to  defend  the 
pass  ;  but  the  enemy  charged  us  with  great  fury.  The 
Saxon  gentleman,  after  defending  himself  with  exceed- 
ing gallantry,  and  refusing  quarter,  was  killed  upon  the 
spot.  A  German  dragoon,  as  I  thought  him,  gave  me 
a  rude  blow  with  the  stock  of  his  piece  on  the  side  of 
my  head,  and  was  just  going  to  repeat  it,  when  one  of 
my  men  shot  him  dead.  I  was  so  stunned  with  the 
blow,  that  I  knew  nothing ;  but  recovering,  I  found 
myself  in  the  hands  of  two  of  the  enemy's  officers,  who 
offered  me  quarter,  which  I  accepted  ;  and  indeed,  to 
give  them  their  due,  they  used  me  very  civilly.  Thus 
this  whole  party  was  defeated,  and  not  above  500  men 
got  safe  to  the  army  ;  nor  had  half  the  number  escaped, 
had  not  the  Saxon  captain  made  so  bold  a  stand  at  the 
head  of  the  lane. 

Several  other  parties  of  the  king's  army  revenged 
our  quarrel,  and  paid  them  home  for  it ;  but  I  had  a 
particular  loss  in  this  defeat,  that  I  never  saw  the  king 
after ;  for  though  his  Majesty  sent  a  trumpet  to  re- 
claim us  as  prisoners  the  very  next  day,  yet  I  was  not 
delivered,  some  scruple  happening  about  exchanging, 
till  after  the  battle  of  Liitzen,  where  that  gallant  prince 
lost  his  life. 

The  Imperial  army  rose  from  their  camp  about  eight 
or  ten  days  after  the  king  had  removed,  and  I  was 
carried  prisoner  in  the  army  till  they  sat  down  to  the 
siege  of  Coburg  Castle,  and  then  was  left  with  other 
prisoners  of  war,  in  the  custody  of  Colonel  Spezuter,  in 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     117 

a  small  castle  near  the  camp  called  Neustadt.  Here  we 
continued  indifferent  well  treated,  but  could  learn  nothing 
of  what  action  the  armies  were  upon,  till  the  Duke  of 
Friedland,  having  been  beaten  off  from  the  castle  of 
Coburg,  marched  into  Saxony,  and  the  prisoners  were 
sent  for  into  the  camp,  as  was  said,  in  order  to  be 
exchanged. 

I  came  into  the  Imperial  leaguer  at  the  siege  of 
Leipsic,  and  within  three  days  after  my  coming,  the 
city  was  surrendered,  and  I  got  liberty  to  lodge  at  my 
old  quarters  in  the  town  upon  my  parole. 

The  King  of  Sweden  was  at  the  heels  of  the 
Imperialists,  for  finding  Wallenstein  resolved  to  ruin 
the  Elector  of  Saxony,  the  king  had  re-collected  as 
much  of  his  divided  army  as  he  could,  and  came  upon 
him  just  as  he  was  going  to  besiege  Torgau. 

As  it  is  not  my  design  to  write  a  history  of  any  more 
of  these  wars  than  I  was  actually  concerned  in,  so  I 
shall  only  note  that,  upon  the  king's  approach,  Wallen- 
stein halted,  and  likewise  called  all  his  troops  together, 
for  he  apprehended  the  king  would  fall  on  him,  and  we 
that  were  prisoners  fancied  the  Imperial  soldiers  went 
unwillingly  out,  for  the  very  name  of  the  King  of 
Sweden  was  become  terrible  to  them.  In  short,  they 
drew  all  the  soldiers  of  the  garrison  they  could  spare 
out  of  Leipsic  ;  sent  for  Pappenheim  again,  who  was 
gone  but  three  days  before  with  6000  men  on  a  private 
expedition.  On  the  i6th  of  November,  the  armies 
met  on  the  plains  of  Liitzen  ;  a  long  and  bloody  battle 
was  fought,  the  Imperialists  were  entirely  routed  and 
beaten,  12,000  slain  upon  the  spot,  their  cannon, 
baggage,  and  2000  prisoners  taken,  but  the  King  of 
Sweden  lost  his  life,  being  killed  at  the  head  of  his 
troops  in  the  beginning  of  the  fight. 

It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  consternation  the 
death  of  this  conquering  king  struck  into  all  the  princes 


n8     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

of  Germany ;  the  grief  for  him  exceeded  all  manner  of 
human  sorrow.  All  people  looked  upon  themselves  as 
ruined  and  swallowed  up ;  the  inhabitants  of  two-thirds 
of  all  Germany  put  themselves  into  mourning  for  him ; 
when  the  ministers  mentioned  him  in  their  sermons 
or  prayers,  whole  congregations  would  burst  out  into 
tears.  The  Elector  of  Saxony  was  utterly  inconsolable, 
and  would  for  several  days  walk  about  his  palace  like  a 
distracted  man,  crying  the  saviour  of  Germany  was  lost, 
the  refuge  of  abused  princes  was  gone,  the  soul  of  the 
war  was  dead ;  and  from  that  hour  was  so  hopeless  of 
out-living  the  war,  that  he  sought  to  make  peace  with 
the  emperor. 

Three  days  after  this  mournful  victory,  the  Saxons 
recovered  the  town  of  Leipsic  by  stratagem.  The 
Duke  of  Saxony's  forces  lay  at  Torgau,  and  perceiving 
the  confusion  the  Imperialists  were  in  at  the  news  of 
the  overthrow  of  their  army,  they  resolved  to  attempt 
the  recovery  of  the  town.  They  sent  about  twenty 
scattering  troopers,  who,  pretending  themselves"  to  be 
Imperialists  fled  from  the  battle,  were  let  in  one  by  one, 
and  still  as  they  came  in,  they  stayed  at  the  court  of 
guard  in  the  port,  entertaining  the  soldiers  with  dis- 
course about  the  fight,  and  how  they  escaped,  and  the 
like,  till  the  whole  number  being  got  in,  at  a  watchword 
they  fell  on  the  guard,  and  cut  them  all  in  pieces ;  and 
immediately  opening  the  gate  to  three  troops  of  Saxon 
horse,  the  town  was  taken  in  a  moment. 

It  was  a  welcome  surprise  to  me,  for  I  was  at  liberty 
of  course ;  and  the  war  being  now  on  another  foot,  as  I 
thought,  and  the  king  dead,  I  resolved  to  quit  the  service. 

I  had  sent  my  man,  as  I  have  already  noted,  into 
England,  in  order  to  bring  over  the  troops  my  father 
had  raised  for  the  King  of  Sweden.  He  executed  his 
commission  so  well,  that  he  landed  with  five  troops 
at  Embden  in  very  good  condition ;  and  orders  were 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     119 

sent  them  by  the  king,  to  join  the  Duke  of  Lunenbcrg's 
army,  which  they  did  at  the  siege  of  Boxtude,  in  the 
Lower  Saxony.  Here  by  long  and  very  sharp  service 
they  were  most  of  them  cut  off,  and  though  they  were 
several  times  recruited,  yet  I  understood  there  were  not 
three  full  troops  left. 

The  Duke  of  Saxe- Weimar,  a  gentleman  of  great 
courage,  had  the  command  of  the  army  after  the  king's 
death,  and  managed  it  with  so  much  prudence,  that  all 
things  were  in  as  much  order  as  could  be  expected, 
after  so  great  a  loss ;  for  the  Imperialists  were  every- 
where beaten,  and  Wallenstein  never  made  any  advantage 
of  the  king's  death. 

I  waited  on  him  at  Heilbronn,  whither  he  was  gone 
to  meet  the  great  chancellor  of  Sweden,  where  I  paid 
him  my  respects,  and  desired  he  would  bestow  the 
remainder  of  my  regiment  on  my  comrade  the  captain, 
which  he  did  with  all  the  civility  and  readiness  imagin- 
able. So  I  took  my  leave  of  him,  and  prepared  to  come 
for  England. 

I  shall  only  note  this,  that  at  this  Diet,  the  Protestant 
princes  of  the  empire  renewed  their  league  with  one 
another,  and  with  the  crown  of  Sweden,  and  came  to 
several  regulations  and  conclusions  for  the  carrying  on 
the  war,  which  they  afterwards  prosecuted,  under  the 
direction  of  the  said  chancellor  of  Sweden.  But  it 
was  not  the  work  of  a  small  difficulty  nor  of  a  short 
time.  And  having  been  persuaded  to  continue  almost 
two  years  afterwards  at  Frankfort,  Heilbronn,  and  there- 
about, by  the  particular  friendship  of  that  noble  wise 
man,  and  extraordinary  statesman,  Axell  Oxenstiern, 
chancellor  of  Sweden,  I  had  opportunity  to  be  con- 
cerned in,  and  present  at,  several  treaties  of  extraordinary 
consequence,  sufficient  for  a  history,  if  that  were  my 
design. 

Particularly  I  had  the  happiness  to  be  present  at, 


I2O     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

and  have  some  concern  in,  the  treaty  for  the  restoring 
the  posterity  of  the  truly  noble  Palsgrave,  King  of 
Bohemia.  King  James  of  England  had  indeed  too 
much  neglected  the  whole  family;  and  I  may  say  with 
authority  enough,  from  my  own  knowledge  of  affairs,  had 
nothing  been  done  for  them  but  what  was  from  England, 
that  family  had  remained  desolate  and  forsaken  to  this 
day. 

But  that  glorious  king,  whom  I  can  neyer  mention 
without  some  remark  of  his  extraordinary  merit,  had 
left  particular  instructions  with  his  chancellor  to  rescue 
the  Palatinate  to  its  rightful  lord,  as  a  proof  of  his 
design  to  restore  the  liberty  of  Germany,  and  reinstate 
the  oppressed  princes  who  were  subjected  to  the 
tyranny  of  the  house  of  Austria. 

Pursuant  to  this  resolution,  the  chancellor  proceeded 
very  much  like  a  man  of  honour ;  and  though  the  King 
of  Bohemia  was  dead  a  little  before,  yet  he  carefully 
managed  the  treaty,  answered  the  objections  of  several 
princes,  who,  in  the  general  ruin  of  the  family,  had 
reaped  private  advantages,  settled  the  capitulations  for 
the  quota  of  contributions  very  much  for  their  advan- 
tage, and  fully  reinstalled  the  Prince  Charles  in  the 
possession  of  all  his  dominions  in  the  Lower  Palatinate, 
which  afterwards  was  confirmed  to  him  and  his  pos- 
terity by  the  peace  of  Westphalia,  where  all  these 
bloody  wars  were  finished  in  a  peace,  which  has  since 
been  the  foundation  of  the  Protestants'  liberty,  and  the 
best  security  of  the  whole  empire. 

I  spent  two  years  rather  in  wandering  up  and  down 
than  travelling ;  for  though  I  had  no  mind  to  serve, 
yet  I  could  not  find  in  my  heart  to  leave  Germany ; 
and  I  had  obtained  some  so  very  close  intimacies  with 
the  general  officers  that  I  was  often  in  the  army,  and 
sometimes  they  did  me  the  honour  to  bring  me  into 
their  councils  of  war. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     121 

Particularly,  at  that  eminent  council  before  the  battle 
of  Nordlingen,  I  was  invited  to  the  council  of  war, 
both  by  Duke  Bernhard  of  Weimar  and  by  Gustavus 
Horn.  They  were  generals  of  equal  worth,  and  their 
courage  and  experience  had  been  so  well,  and  so  often 
tried,  that  more  than  ordinary  regard  was  always  given 
to  what  they  said.  Duke  Bernhard  was  indeed  the 
younger  man,  and  Gustavus  had  served  longer  under 
our  great  schoolmaster  the  king ;  but  it  was  hard  to 
judge  which  was  the  better  general,  since  both  had 
experience  enough,  and  shown  undeniable  proofs  both 
of  their  bravery  and  conduct. 

I  am  obliged,  in  the  course  of  my  relation,  so  often 
to  mention  the  great  respect  I  often  received  from  these 
great  men,  that  it  makes  me  sometimes  jealous,  lest 
the  reader  may  think  I  affect  it  as  a  vanity.  The 
truth  is,  and  I  am  ready  to  confess,  the  honours  I  re- 
ceived, upon  all  occasions,  from  persons  of  such  worth, 
and  who  had  such  an  eminent  share  in  the  greatest 
action  of  that  age,  very  much  pleased  me,  and  par- 
ticularly, as  they  gave  me  occasions  to  see  everything 
that  was  doing  on  the  whole  stage  of  the  war.  For 
being  under  no  command,  but  at  liberty  to  rove  about,  I 
could  come  to  no  Swedish  garrison  or  party,  but, 
sending  my  name  to  the  commanding  officer,  I  could 
have  the  word  sent  me ;  and  if  I  came  into  the  army, 
I  was  often  treated  as  I  was  now  at  this  famous  battle 
of  Nordlingen. 

But  I  cannot  but  say,  that  I  always  looked  upon 
this  particular  respect  to  be  the  effect  of  more  than 
ordinary  regard  the  great  king  of  Sweden  always 
showed  me,  rather  than  any  merit  of  my  own ;  and 
the  veneration  they  all  had  for  his  memory,  made 
them  continue  to  show  me  all  the  marks  of  a  suitable 
esteem. 

But  to  return  to  the  council  of  war,  the  great  and, 


122     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

indeed,  the  only  question  before  us  was,  Shall  we 
give  battle  to  the  Imperialists,  or  not  ?  Gustavus 
Horn  was  against  it,  and  gave,  as  I  thought,  the  most 
invincible  arguments  against  a  battle  that  reason  could 
imagine. 

First,  they  were  weaker  than  the  enemy  by  above 
5000  men. 

Secondly,  the  Cardinal- Infant  of  Spain,  who  was 
in  the  Imperial  army  with  8000  men,  was  but  there 
en  passant,  being  going  from  Italy  to  Flanders,  to  take 
upon  him  the  government  of  the  Low  Countries;  and  if 
he  saw  no  prospect  of  immediate  action,  would  be  gone 
in  a  few  days. 

Thirdly,  they  had  two  reinforcements,  one  of  5000 
men,  under  the  command  of  Colonel  Cratz,  and  one  of 
7000  men,  under  the  Rhinegrave,  who  were  just  at 
hand — the  last  within  three  days'  march  of  them :  and, 

Lastly,  they  had  already  saved  their  honour,  in  that 
they  had  put  600  foot  into  the  town  of  Nordlingen,  in 
the  face  of  the  enemy's  army,  and  consequently  the  town 
might  hold  out  some  days  the  longer. 

Fate,  rather  than  reason,  certainly  blinded  the  rest  of 
the  generals  against  such  arguments  as  these.  Duke 
Bernhard  and  almost  all  the  generals  were  for  fighting, 
alleging  the  affront  it  would  be  to  the  Swedish  reputa- 
tion to  see  their  friends  in  the  town  lost  before  their 
faces. 

Gustavus  Horn  stood  stiff  to  his  cautious  advice,  and 
was  against  it,  and  I  thought  the  Baron  D'OfFkirk 
treated  him  a  little  indecently ;  for,  being  very  warm 
in  the  matter,  he  told  them,  that  if  Gustavus  Adolphus 
had  been  governed  by  such  cowardly  counsel,  he  had 
never  been  conqueror  of  half  Germany  in  two  years. 
"  No,"  replied  old  General  Horn,  very  smartly,  "  but 
he  had  been  now  alive  to  have  testified  for  me,  that  I 
was  never  taken  by  him  for  a  coward ;  and  yet,"  says 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     123 

he,  "the  king  was  never  for  a  victory  with  a  hazard, 
when  he  could  have  it  without." 

I  was  asked  my  opinion,  which  I  would  have  de- 
clined, being  in  no  commission  ;  but  they  pressed  me 
to  speak.  I  told  them  I  was  for  staying  at  least  till 
the  Rhinegrave  came  up,  who,  at  least,  might,  if  ex- 
presses were  sent  to  hasten  him,  be  up  with  us  in  twenty- 
four  hours.  But  Offkirk  could  not  hold  his  passion, 
and  had  not  he  been  overruled  he  would  have  almost 
quarrelled  with  Marshal  Horn.  Upon  which  the  old 
general,  not  to  foment  him,  with  a  great  deal  of  mildness 
stood  up,  and  spoke  thus — 

"Come,  Offkirk,"  says  he,  "I'll  submit  my  opinion 
to  you,  and  the  majority  of  our  fellow-soldiers.  We 
will  fight,  but,  upon  my  word,  we  shall  have  our  hands 
full." 

The  resolution  thus  taken,  they  attacked  the  Imperial 
army.  I  must  confess  the  counsels  of  this  day  seemed 
as  confused  as  the  resolutions  of  the  night. 

Duke  Bernhard  was  to  lead  the  van  of  the  left  wing, 
and  to  post  himself  upon  a  hill  which  was  on  the 
enemy's  right  without  their  entrenchments,  so  that, 
having  secured  that  post,  they  might  level  their  cannon 
upon  the  foot,  who  stood  behind  the  lines,  and  relieved 
the  town  at  pleasure.  He  marched  accordingly  by 
break  of  day,  and  falling  with  great  fury  upon  eight 
regiments  of  foot,  which  were  posted  at  the  foot  of  the 
hill,  he  presently  routed  them,  and  made  himself  master 
of  the  post.  Flushed  with  this  success,  he  never  regards 
his  own  concerted  measures  of  stopping  there  and 
possessing  what  he  had  got,  but  pushes  on  and  falls  in 
with  the  main  body  of  the  enemy's  army. 

While  this  was  doing,  Gustavus  Horn  attacks  another 
post  on  the  hill,  where  the  Spaniards  had  posted  and 
lodged  themselves  behind  some  works  they  had  cast  up 
on  the  side  of  the  hill.  Here  they  defended  themselves 


124     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

with  extreme  obstinacy  for  five  hours,  and  at  last 
obliged  the  Swedes  to  give  it  over  with  loss.  This 
extraordinary  gallantry  of  the  Spaniards  was  the  saving 
of  the  Imperial  army ;  for  Duke  Bernhard  having  all 
this  while  resisted  the  frequent  charges  of  the  Imperial- 
ists, and  borne  the  weight  of  two-thirds  of  their  army, 
was  not  able  to  stand  any  longer,  but  sending  one 
messenger  on  the  neck  of  another  to  Gustavus  Horn 
for  more  foot,  he,  finding  he  could  not  carry  his 
point,  had  given  it  over,  and  was  in  full  march  to 
second  the  duke.  But  now  it  was  too  late,  for 
the  King  of  Hungary  seeing  the  duke's  men,  as  it 
were,  wavering,  and  having  notice  of  Horn's  wheeling 
about  to  second  him,  falls  in  with  all  his  force  upon 
his  flank,  and  with  his  Hungarian  hussars,  made 
such  a  furious  charge,  that  the  Swedes  could  stand  no 
longer. 

The  rout  of  the  left  wing  was  so  much  the  more 
unhappy,  as  it  happened  just  upon  Gustavus  Horn's 
coming  up ;  for,  being  pushed  on  with  the  enemies  at 
their  heels,  they  were  driven  upon  their  own  friends, 
who,  having  no  ground  to  open  and  give  them  way, 
were  trodden  down  by  their  own  runaway  brethren. 
This  brought  all  into  the  utmost  confusion.  The 
Imperialists  cried  "Victoria!  "  and  fell  into  the  middle 
of  the  infantry  with  a  terrible  slaughter. 

I  have  always  observed,  'tis  fatal  to  upbraid  an  old 
experienced  officer  with  want  of  courage.  If  Gustavus 
Horn  had  not  been  whetted  with  the  reproaches  of 
the  Baron  D'OfFkirk,  and  some  of  the  other  general 
officers,  I  believe  it  had  saved  the  lives  of  a  thousand 
men ;  for  when  all  was  thus  lost,  several  officers  advised 
him  to  make  a  retreat  with  such  regiments  as  he  had 
yet  unbroken ;  but  nothing  could  persuade  him  to  stir 
a  foot.  But  turning  his  flank  into  a  front,  he  saluted 
the  enemy,  as  they  passed  by  him  in  pursuit  of  the  rest, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     125 

with  such  terrible  volleys  of  small  shot,  as  cost  them 
the  lives  of  abundance  of  their  men. 

The  Imperialists,  eager  in  the  pursuit,  left  him 
unbroken,  till  the  Spanish  brigade  came  up  and  charged 
him.  These  he  bravely  repulsed  with  a  great  slaughter, 
and  after  them  a  body  of  dragoons  ;  till  being  laid 
at  on  every  side,  and  most  of  his  men  killed,  the  brave 
old  general,  with  all  the  rest  that  were  left,  were 
made  prisoners. 

The  Swedes  had  a  terrible  loss  here,  for  almost  all 
their  infantry  were  killed  or  taken  prisoners.  Gustavus 
Horn  refused  quarter  several  times  ;  and  still  those  that 
attacked  him  were  cut  down  by  his  men,  who  fought 
like  furies,  and  by  the  example  of  their  general,  behaved 
themselves  like  lions.  But  at  last,  these  poor  remains 
of  a  body  of  the  bravest  men  in  the  world  were  forced 
to  submit.  I  have  heard  him  say,  he  had  much  rather 
have  died  than  been  taken,  but  that  he  yielded  in  com- 
passion to  so  many  brave  men  as  were  about  him  ;  for 
none  of  them  would  take  quarter  till  he  gave  his  consent. 

I  had  the  worst  share  in  this  battle  that  ever  I  had 
in  any  action  of  my  life ;  and  that  was  to  be  posted 
among  as  brave  a  body  of  horse  as  any  in  Germany, 
and  yet  not  be  able  to  succour  our  own  men  ;  but  our 
foot  were  cut  in  pieces  (as  it  were)  before  our  faces, 
and  the  situation  of  the  ground  was  such  as  we  could 
not  fall  in.  All  that  we  were  able  to  do,  was  to  carry 
off  about  2000  of  the  foot,  who,  running  away  in  the 
rout  of  the  left  wing,  rallied  among  our  squadrons,  and 
got  away  with  us.  Thus  we  stood  till  we  saw  all  was 
lost,  and  then  made  the  best  retreat  we  could  to  save 
ourselves,  several  regiments  having  never  charged,  nor 
fired  a  shot ;  for  the  foot  had  so  embarrassed  them- 
selves among  the  lines  and  works  of  the  enemy,  and 
in  the  vineyards  and  mountains,  that  the  horse  were 
rendered  absolutely  unserviceable. 


126     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  Rhinegrave  had  made  such  expedition  to  join 
us,  that  he  reached  within  three  miles  of  the  place  of 
action  that  night,  and  he  was  a  great  safeguard  for  us  in 
rallying  our  dispersed  men,  who  else  had  fallen  into 
the  enemy's  hands,  and  in  checking  the  pursuit  of  the 
enemy. 

And  indeed,  had  but  any  considerable  body  of  the 
foot  made  an  orderly  retreat,  it  had  been  very  probable 
they  had  given  the  enemy  a  brush  that  would  have 
turned  the  scale  of  victory  ;  for  our  horse  being  whole, 
and  in  a  manner  untouched,  the  enemy  found  such  a 
check  in  the  pursuit,  that  1600  of  their  forwardest  men 
following  too  eagerly,  fell  in  with  the  Rhinegrave's 
advanced  troops  the  next  day,  and  were  cut  in  pieces 
without  mercy. 

This  gave  us  some  satisfaction  for  the  loss,  but  it  was 
but  small  compared  to  the  ruin  of  that  day.  We  lost  near 
8000  men  upon  the  spot,  and  above  3000  prisoners,  all 
our  cannon  and  baggage,  and  1 20  colours.  I  thought 
I  never  made  so  indifferent  a  figure  in  my  life,  and  so 
we  thought  all ;  to  come  away,  lose  our  infantry,  our 
general,  and  our  honour,  and  never  fight  for  it.  Duke 
Bernhard  was  utterley  disconsolate  for  old  Gustavus 
Horn,  for  he  concluded  him  killed ;  he  tore  the  hair 
from  his  head  like  a  madman,  and  telling  the  Rhine- 
grave  the  story  of  the  council  of  war,  would  reproach 
himself  with  not  taking  his  advice,  often  repeating  it  in 
his  passion.  "  'Tis  I,"  said  he,  "  have  been  the  death 
of  the  bravest  general  in  Germany ;  "  would  call  him- 
self fool  and  boy,  and  such  names,  for  not  listening  to 
the  reasons  of  an  old  experienced  soldier.  But  when 
he  heard  he  was  alive  in  the  enemy's  hands  he  was  the 
easier,  and  applied  himself  to  the  recruiting  his  troops, 
and  the  like  business  of  the  war  ;  and  it  was  not  long 
before  he  paid  the  Imperialists  with  interest. 

I  returned  to  Frankfort-au-Main  after  this  action, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     127 

\vhich  happened  the  I7th  of  August  1634;  but  the 
progress  of  the  Imperialists  was  so  great  that  there  was 
no  staying  at  Frankfort.  The  chancellor  Oxenstiern 
removed  to  Magdeburg,  Duke  Bernhard  and  the  Land- 
grave marched  into  Alsatia,  and  the  Imperialists  carried 
all  before  them  for  all  the  rest  of  the  campaign.  They 
took  Philipsburg  by  surprise ;  they  took  Augsburg  by 
famine,  Spire  and  Treves  by  sieges,  taking  the  Elector 
prisoner.  But  this  success  did  one  piece  of  service  to 
the  Swedes,  that  it  brought  the  French  into  the  war  on 
their  side,  for  the  Elector  of  Treves  was  their  con- 
federate. The  French  gave  the  conduct  of  the  war  to 
Duke  Bernhard.  This,  though  the  Duke  of  Saxony 
fell  off,  and  fought  against  them,  turned  the  scale  so 
much  in  their  favour,  that  they  recovered  their  losses, 
and  proved  a  terror  to  all  Germany.  The  farther 
accounts  of  the  war  I  refer  to  the  histories  of  those 
times,  which  I  have  since  read  with  a  great  deal  of 
delight. 

I  confess  when  I  saw  the  progress  of  the  Imperial 
army,  after  the  battle  of  Nordlingen,  and  the  Duke  of 
Saxony  turning  his  arms  against  them,  I  thought  their 
affairs  declining ;  and,  giving  them  over  for  lost,  I  left 
Frankfort,  and  came  down  the  Rhine  to  Cologne,  and 
from  thence  into  Holland. 

I  came  to  the  Hague  the  8th  of  March  1635,  having 
spent  three  years  and  a  half  in  Germany,  and  the  greatest 
part  of  it  in  the  Swedish  army. 

I  spent  some  time  in  Holland  viewing  the  wonderful 
power  of  art,  which  I  observed  in  the  fortifications  of 
their  towns,  where  the  very  bastions  stand  on  bottom- 
less- morasses,  and  yet  are  as  firm  as  any  in  the  world. 
There  I  had  the  opportunity  of  seeing  the  Dutch  army, 
and  their  famous  general,  Prince  Maurice.  'Tis  true, 
the  men  behaved  themselves  well  enough  in  action, 
when  they  were  put  to  it,  but  the  prince's  way  of 


128     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

beating  his  enemies  without  fighting,  was  so  unlike  the 
gallantry  of  my  royal  instructor,  that  it  had  no  manner 
of  relish  with  me.  Our  way  in  Germany  was  always 
to  seek  out  the  enemy  and  fight  him ;  and,  give  the 
Imperialists  their  due,  they  were  seldom  hard  to  be 
found,  but  were  as  free  of  their  flesh  as  we  were. 
Whereas  Prince  Maurice  would  lie  in  a  camp  till  he 
starved  half  his  men,  if  by  lying  there  he  could  but 
starve  two-thirds  of  his  enemies ;  so  that  indeed  the 
war  in  Holland  had  more  of  fatigues  and  hardships  in 
it,  and  ours  had  more  of  fighting  and  blows.  Hasty 
marches,  long  and  unwholesome  encampments,  winter 
parties,  counter-marching,  dodging  and  entrenching, 
were  the  exercises  of  his  men,  and  oftentimes  killed 
him  more  men  with  hunger,  cold  and  diseases,  than 
he  could  do  with  fighting.  Not  that  it  required  less 
courage,  but  rather  more,  for  a  soldier  had  at  any 
time  rather  die  in  the  field  a  la  coup  de  mousquet,  than 
be  starved  with  hunger,  or  frozen  to  death  in  the 
trenches. 

Nor  do  I  think  I  lessen  the  reputation  of  that  great 
general ;  for  'tis  most  certain  he  ruined  the  Spaniard 
more  by  spinning  the  war  thus  out  in  length,  than  he 
could  possibly  have  done  by  a  swift  conquest.  For 
had  he,  Gustavus-like,  with  a  torrent  of  victory  dis- 
lodged the  Spaniard  of  all  the  twelve  provinces  in  five 
years,  whereas  he  was  forty  years  a-beating  them  out  of 
seven,  he  had  left  them  rich  and  strong  at  home,  and 
able  to  keep  them  in  constant  apprehensions  of  a  return 
of  his  power.  Whereas,  by  the  long  continuance  of 
the  war,  he  so  broke  the  very  heart  of  the  Spanish 
monarchy,  so  absolutely  and  irrecoverably  impoverished 
them,  that  they  have  ever  since  languished  of  the 
disease,  till  they  are  fallen  from  the  most  powerful,  to 
be  the  most  despicable  nation  in  the  world. 

The  prodigious  charge  the  King  of  Spain  was  at  in 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     129 

losing  the  seven  provinces,  broke  the  very  spirit  of  the 
nation  ;  and  that  so  much,  that  all  the  wealth  of  their 
Peruvian  mountains  have  not  been  able  to  retrieve  it ; 
King  Philip  having  often  declared  that  war,  besides 
his  Armada  for  invading  England,  had  cost  him 
370,000,000  of  ducats,  and  4,000,000  of  the  best 
soldiers  in  Europe ;  whereof,  by  an  unreasonable  Spanish 
obstinacy,  above  60,000  lost  their  lives  before  Ostend, 
a  town  not  worth  a  sixth  part  either  of  the  blood  or 
money  it  cost  in  a  siege  of  three  years  ;  and  which 
at  last  he  had  never  taken,  but  that  Prince  Maurice 
thought  it  not  worth  the  charge  of  defending  it  any 
longer. 

However,  I  say,  their  way  of  fighting  in  Holland 
did  not  relish  with  me  at  all.  The  prince  lay  a  long 
time  before  a  little  fort  called  Schenkenschanz,  which 
the  Spaniard  took  by  surprise,  and  I  thought  he  might 
have  taken  it  much  sooner.  Perhaps  it  might  be  my 
mistake,  but  I  fancied  my  hero,  the  King  of  Sweden, 
would  have  carried  it  sword  in  hand,  in  half  the  time. 

However  it  was,  I  did  not  like  it ;  so  in  the  latter 
end  of  the  year  I  came  to  the  Hague,  and  took  shipping 
for  England,  where  I  arrived,  to  the  great  satisfaction 
of  my  father  and  all  my  friends. 

My  father  was  then  in  London,  and  carried  me  to 
kiss  the  king's  hand.  His  Majesty  was  pleased  to 
receive  me  very  well,  and  to  say  a  great  many  very 
obliging  things  to  my  father  upon  my  account. 

I  spent  my  time  very  retired  from  court,  for  I  was 
almost  wholly  in  the  country ;  and  it  being  so  much 
different  from  my  genius,  which  hankered  after  a 
warmer  sport  than  hunting  among  our  Welsh  moun- 
tains, I  could  not  but  be  peeping  in  all  the  foreign 
accounts  from  Germany,  to  see  who  and  who  was 
together.  There  I  could  never  hear  of  a  battle,  and 
the  Germans  being  beaten,  but  I  began  to  wish  myself 

I 


130     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

there.  But  when  an  account  came  of  the  progress  of 
John  Baner,  the  Swedish  general  in  Saxony,  and  of 
the  constant  victories  he  had  there  over  the  Saxons, 
I  could  no  longer  contain  myself,  but  told  my  father 
this  life  was  very  disagreeable  to  me ;  that  I  lost  my 
time  here,  and  might  to  much  more  advantage  go  into 
Germany,  where  I  was  sure  I  might  make  my  fortune 
upon  my  own  terms ;  that,  as  young  as  I  was,  I  might 
have  been  a  general  officer  by  this  time,  if  I  had  not 
laid  down  my  commission ;  that  General  Baner,  or 
the  Marshal  Horn,  had  either  of  them  so  much  respect 
for  me,  that  I  was  sure  I  might  have  anything  of  them  ; 
and  that  if  he  pleased  to  give  me  leave,  I  would  go  for 
Germany  again.  My  father  was  very  unwilling  to  let 
me  go,  but  seeing  me  uneasy,  told  me  that,  if  I  was 
resolved,  he  would  oblige  me  to  stay  no  longer  in 
England  than  the  next  spring,  and  I  should  have  his 
consent. 

The  winter  following  began  to  look  very  unpleasant 
upon  us  in  England,  and  my  father  used  often  to  sigh 
at  it ;  and  would  tell  me  sometimes  he  was  afraid  we 
should  have  no  need  to  send  Englishmen  to  fight  in 
Germany. 

The  cloud  that  seemed  to  threaten  most  was  from 
Scotland.  My  father,  who  had  made  himself  master 
of  the  arguments  on  both  sides,  used  to  be  often  saying 
he  feared  there  was  some  about  the  king  who  exaspe- 
rated him  too  much  against  the  Scots,  and  drove  things 
too  high.  For  my  part,  I  confess  I  did  not  much 
trouble  my  head  with  the  cause ;  but  all  my  fear  was 
they  would  not  fall  out,  and  we  should  have  no  fighting. 
I  have  often  reflected  since,  that  I  ought  to  have  known 
better,  that  had  seen  how  the  most  flourishing  provinces 
of  Germany  were  reduced  to  the  most  miserable  condi- 
tion that  ever  any  country  in  the  world  was,  by  the 
ravagings  of  soldiers,  and  the  calamities  of  war. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     131 

How  much  soever  I  was  to  blame,  yet  so  it  was, 
I  had  a  secret  joy  at  the  news  of  the  king's  raising 
an  army,  and  nothing  could  have  withheld  me  from 
appearing  in  it ;  but  my  eagerness  was  anticipated  by  an 
express  the  king  sent  to  my  father,  to  know  if  his  son 
was  in  England ;  and  my  father  having  ordered  me 
to  carry  the  answer  myself,  I  waited  upon  his  Majesty 
with  the  messenger.  The  king  received,  me  with  his 
usual  kindness,  and  asked  me  if  I  was  willing  to  serve 
him  against  the  Scots  ? 

I  answered,  I  was  ready  to  serve  him  against  any  that 
his  Majesty  thought  fit  to  account  his  enemies,  and 
should  count  it  an  honour  to  receive  his  commands. 
Hereupon  his  Majesty  offered  me  a  commission.  I 
told  him,  I  supposed  there  would  not  be  much  time 
for  raising  of  men  ;  that  if  his  Majesty  pleased  I  would 
be  at  the  rendezvous  with  as  many  gentlemen  as  I  could 
get  together,  to  serve  his  Majesty  as  volunteers. 

The  truth  is,  I  found  all  the  regiments  of  horse  the 
king  designed  to  raise  were  but  two  as  regiments  ; 
the  rest  of  the  horse  were  such  as  the  nobility  raised 
in  their  several  counties,  and  commanded  them  them- 
selves ;  and,  as  I  had  commanded  a  regiment  of  horse 
abroad,  it  looked  a  little  odd  to  serve  with  a  single 
troop  at  home ;  and  the  king  took  the  thing  presently. 
"  Indeed  'twill  be  a  volunteer  war,"  said  the  king, 
"  for  the  Northern  gentry  have  sent  me  an  account  of 
above  4000  horse  they  have  already."  I  bowed,  and 
told  his  Majesty  I  was  glad  to  hear  his  subjects  were 
so  forward  to  serve  him.  So  taking  his  Majesty's  orders 
to  be  at  York  by  the  end  of  March,  I  returned  to  my 
father. 

My  father  was  very  glad  I  had  not  taken  a  commis- 
sion, for  I  know  not  from  what  kind  of  emulation 
between  the  western  and  northern  gentry.  The  gentle- 
men of  our  side  were  not  very  forward  in  the  service ; 


132     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

their  loyalty  to  the  king  in  the  succeeding  times  made  it 
appear  it  was  not  from  any  disaffection  to  his  Majesty's 
interest  or  person,  or  to  the  cause ;  but  this,  however, 
made  it  difficult  for  me  when  I  came  home  to  get  any 
gentleman  of  quality  to  serve  with  me,  so  that  I  pre- 
sented myself  to  his  Majesty  only  as  a  volunteer,  with 
eight  gentlemen  and  about  thirty-six  countrymen  well 
mounted  and  armed. 

And  as  it  proved,  these  were  enough,  for  this  expe- 
dition ended  in  an  accommodation  with  the  Scots  ;  and 
they  not  advancing  so  much  as  to  their  own  borders, 
we  never  came  to  any  action.  But  the  armies  lay  in 
the  counties  of  Northumberland  and  Durham,  ate  up 
the  country,  and  spent  the  king  a  vast  sum  of  money ; 
and  so  this  war  ended,  a  pacification  was  made,  and 
both  sides  returned. 

The  truth  is,  I  never  saw  such  a  despicable  appear- 
ance of  men  in  arms  to  begin  a  war  in  my  life ; 
whether  it  was  that  I  had  seen  so  many  braver  armies 
abroad  that  prejudiced  me  against  them,  or  that  it 
really  was  so  ;  for  to  me  they  seemed  little  better  than 
a  rabble  met  together  to  devour,  rather  than  fight  for 
their  king  and  country.  There  was  indeed  a  great 
appearance  of  gentlemen,  and  those  of  extraordinary 
quality ;  but  their  garb,  their  equipages,  and  their  mien, 
did  not  look  like  war ;  their  troops  were  filled  with 
footmen  and  servants,  and  wretchedly  armed,  God  wot. 
I  believe  I  might  say,  without  vanity,  one  regiment  of 
Finland  horse  would  have  made  sport  at  beating  them 
all.  There  were  such  crowds  of  parsons  (for  this  was 
a  Church  war  in  particular)  that  the  camp  and  court 
was  full  of  them ;  and  the  king  was  so  eternally  be- 
sieged with  clergymen  of  one  sort  or  another,  that  it 
gave  offence  to  the  chief  of  the  nobility. 

As  was  the  appearance,  so  was  the  service.  The 
army  marched  to  the  borders,  and  the  headquarter 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     133 

was  at  Berwick-upon-Tweed ;  but  the  Scots  never 
appeared,  no,  not  so  much  as  their  scouts ;  whereupon 
the  king  called  a  council  of  war,  and  there  it  was  re- 
solved to  send  the  Earl  of  Holland  with  a  party  of 
horse  into  Scotland,  to  learn  some  news  of  the  enemy. 
And  truly  the  first  news  he  brought  us  was,  that  finding 
their  army  encamped  about  Coldingham,  fifteen  miles 
from  Berwick,  as  soon  as  he  appeared,  the  Scots  drew 
out  a  party  to  charge  him,  upon  which  most  of  his 
men  halted — I  don't  say  run  away,  but  'twas  next  door 
to  it — for  they  could  not  be  persuaded  to  fire  their 
pistols,  and  wheel  off  like  soldiers,  but  retreated  in 
such  a  disorderly  and  shameful  manner,  that  had  the 
enemy  but  had  either  the  courage  or  conduct  to  have 
followed  them,  it  must  have  certainly  ended  in  the  ruin 
of  the  whole  party. 


THE  SECOND   PART 

I  CONFESS,  when  I  went  into  arms  at  the  beginning 
of  this  war,  I  never  troubled  myself  to  examine 
sides :  I  was  glad  to  hear  the  drums  beat  for 
soldiers,  as  if  I  had  been  a  mere  Swiss,  that  had  not 
cared  which  side  went  up  or  down,  so  I  had  my  pay. 
I  went  as  eagerly  and  blindly  about  my  business,  as 
the  meanest  wretch  that  'listed  in  the  army  ;  nor  had  I 
the  least  compassionate  thought  for  the  miseries  of  my 
native  country,  till  after  the  fight  at  Edgehill.  I  had 
known  as  much,  and  perhaps  more  than  most  in  the 
army,  what  it  was  to  have  an  enemy  ranging  in  the 
bowels  of  a  kingdom ;  I  had  seen  the  most  flourishing 
provinces  of  Germany  reduced  to  perfect  deserts,  and 
the  voracious  Crabats,  with  inhuman  barbarity,  quench- 
ing the  fires  of  the  plundered  villages  with  the  blood 
of  the  inhabitants.  Whether  this  had  hardened  me 
against  the  natural  tenderness  which  I  afterwards  found 
return  upon  me,  or  not,  I  cannot  tell ;  but  I  reflected 
upon  myself  afterwards  with  a  great  deal  of  trouble, 
for  the  unconcernedness  of  my  temper  at  the  approach- 
ing ruin  of  my  native  country. 

I  was  in  the  first  army  at  York,  as  I  have  already 

noted,  and,  I  must  confess,  had  the  least  diversion  there 

that  ever  I  found  in  an  army  in  my  life.     For  when  I 

was  in  Germany  with  the  King  of  Sweden,  we  used  to 

134 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     135 

see  the  king  with  the  general  officers  every  morning  on 
horseback  viewing  his  men,  his  artillery,  his  horses,  and 
always  something  going  forward.  Here  we  saw  nothing 
but  courtiers  and  clergymen,  bishops  and  parsons,  as 
busy  as  if  the  direction  of  the  war  had  been  in  them. 
The  king  was  seldom  seen  among  us,  and  never  without 
some  of  them  always  about  him. 

Those  few  of  us  that  had  seen  the  wars,  and  would 
have  made  a  short  end  of  this  for  him,  began  to  be  very 
uneasy  ;  and  particularly  a  certain  nobleman  took  the 
freedom  to  tell  the  king  that  the  clergy  would  certainly 
ruin  the  expedition.  The  case  was  this :  he  would 
have  had  the  king  have  immediately  marched  into 
Scotland,  and  put  the  matter  to  the  trial  of  a  battle ; 
and  he  urged  it  every  day.  And  the  king  finding  his 
reasons  very  good,  would  often  be  of  his  opinion  ;  but 
next  morning  he  would  be  of  another  mind. 

This  gentleman  was  a  man  of  conduct  enough,  and 
of  unquestioned  courage,  and  afterwards  lost  his  life  for 
the  king.  He  saw  we  had  an  army  of  young  stout 
fellows  numerous  enough ;  and  though  they  had  not 
yet  seen  much  service,  he  was  for  bringing  them  to 
action,  that  the  Scots  might  not  have  time  to  strengthen 
themselves,  nor  they  have  time  by  idleness  and  sotting, 
the  bane  of  soldiers,  to  make  themselves  unfit  for 
anything; 

I  was  one  morning  in  company  with  this  gentleman  ; 
and  as  he  was  a  warm  man,  and  eager  in  his  discourse, 
"  A  pox  of  these  priests,"  says  he,  "  'tis  for  them  the 
king  has  raised  this  army,  and  put  his  friends  to  a 
vast  charge ;  and  now  we  are  come,  they  won't  let 
us  fight." 

But  I  was  afterwards  convinced  the  clergy  saw 
further  into  the  matter  than  we  did.  They  saw  the 
Scots  had  a  better  army  than  we  had — bold  and  ready' 
commanded  by  brave  officers — and  they  foresaw  that 


136     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

if  we  fought  we  should  be  beaten,  and  if  beaten,  they 
were  undone.  And  'twas  very  true,  we  had  all  been 
ruined  if  we  had  engaged. 

It  is  true  when  we  came  to  the  pacification  which 
followed,  I  confess  I  was  of  the  same  mind  the  gentle- 
man had  been  of;  for  we  had  better  have  fought  and 
been  beaten  than  have  made  so  dishonourable  a  treaty 
without  striking  a  stroke.  This  pacification  seems  to 
me  to  have  laid  the  scheme  of  all  the  blood  and  con- 
fusion which  followed  in  the  Civil  War.  For  whatever 
the  king  and  his  friends  might  pretend  to  do  by  talking 
big,  the  Scots  saw  he  was  to  be  bullied  into  anything, 
and  that  when  it  came  to  the  push  the  courtiers  never 
cared  to  bring  it  to  blows. 

I  have  little  or  nothing  to  say  as  to  action  in  this 
mock  expedition.  The  king  was  persuaded  at  last  to 
march  to  Berwick  ;  and,  as  I  have  said  already,  a  party 
of  horse  went  out  to  learn  news  of  the  Scots,  and  as 
soon  as  they  saw  them,  ran  away  from  them  bravely. 

This  made  the  Scots  so  insolent  that,  whereas 
before  they  lay  encamped  behind  a  river,  and  never 
showed  themselves,  in  a  sort  of  modest  deference  to  their 
king,  which  was  the  pretence  of  not  being  aggressors 
or  invaders,  only  arming  in  their  own  defence,  now, 
having  been  invaded  by  the  English  troops  entering 
Scotland,  they  had  what  they  wanted.  And  to  show 
it  was  not  fear  that  retained  them  before,  but  policy, 
now  they  came  up  in  parties  to  our  very  gates,  braving 
and  facing  us  every  day. 

I  had,  with  more  curiosity  than  discretion,  put  my- 
self as  a  volunteer  at  the  head  of  one  of  our  parties  of 
horse,  under  my  Lord  Holland,  when  they  went  out 
to  discover  the  enemy ;  they  went,  they  said,  to  see 
what  the  Scots  were  a-doing. 

We  had  not  marched  far,  but  our  scouts  brought 
word  they  had  discovered  some  horse,  but  could  not 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     137 

come  up  to  them,  because  a  river  parted  them.  At 
the  heels  of  these  came  another  party  of  our  men  upon 
the  spur  to  us,  and  said  the  enemy  was  behind,  which 
might  be  true  for  aught  we  knew ;  but  it  was  so  far 
behind  that  nobody  could  see  them,  and  yet  the  country 
was  plain  and  open  for  above  a  mile  before  us.  Here- 
upon we  made  a  halt,  and,  indeed,  I  was  afraid  it 
would  have  been  an  odd  sort  of  a  halt,  for  our  men 
began  to  look  one  upon  another,  as  they  do  in  like 
cases,  when  they  are  going  to  break ;  and  when  the 
scouts  came  galloping  in  the  men  were  in  such  disorder, 
that  had  but  one  man  broke  away,  I  am  satisfied  they 
had  all  run  for  it. 

I  found  my  Lord  Holland  did  not  perceive  it ;  but 
after  the  first  surprise  was  a  little  over  I  told  my  lord 
what  I  had  observed,  and  that  unless  some  course 
was  immediately  taken  they  would  all  run  at  the  first 
sight  of  the  enemy.  I  found  he  was  much  concerned 
at  it,  and  began  to  consult  what  course  to  take  to  pre- 
vent it.  I  confess  'tis  a  hard  question  how  to  make 
men  stand  and  face  an  enemy,  when  fear  has  possessed 
their  minds  with  an  inclination  to  run  away.  But 
I'll  give  that  honour  to  the  memory  of  that  noble 
gentleman,  who,  though  his  experience  in  matters  of 
war  was  small,  having  never  been  in  much  service,  yet 
his  courage  made  amends  for  it ;  for  I  dare  say  he 
would  not  have  turned  his  horse  from  an  army  of 
enemies,  nor  have  saved  his  life  at  the  price  of  running 
away  for  it. 

My  lord  soon  saw,  as  well  as  I,  the  fright  the  men 
were  in,  after  I  had  given  him  a  hint  of  it ;  and  to 
encourage  them,  rode  through  their  ranks  and  spoke 
cheerfully  to  them,  and  used  what  arguments  he  thought 
proper  to  settle  their  minds.  I  remembered  a  saying 
which  I  had  heard  old  Marshal  Gustavus  Horn  speak 
in  Germany,  "  If  you  find  your  men  falter,  or  in  doubt, 


138     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

never  suffer  them  to  halt,  but  keep  them  advancing ; 
for  while  they  are  going  forward,  it  keeps  up  their 
courage." 

As  soon  as  I  could  get  opportunity  to  speak  to  him, 
I  gave  him  this  as  my  opinion.  "  That's  very  well," 
says  my  lord,  "  but  I  am  studying,"  says  he,  "  to  post 
them  so  as  that  they  can't  run  if  they  would ;  and  if 
they  stand  but  once  to  face  the  enemy,  I  don't  fear 
them  afterwards." 

While  we  were  discoursing  thus,  word  was  brought 
that  several  parties  of  the  enemies  were  seen  on  the 
farther  side  of  the  river,  upon  which  my  lord  gave  the 
word  to  march  ;  and  as  we  were  marching  on,  my  lord 
calls  out  a  lieutenant  who  had  been  an  old  soldier,  with 
only  five  troopers  whom  he  had  most  confidence  in, 
and  having  given  him  his  lesson,  he  sends  him  away. 
In  a  quarter  of  an  hour  one  of  the  five  troopers  comes 
back  galloping  and  hallooing,  and  tells  us  his  lieutenant 
had,  with  his  small  party,  beaten  a  party  of  twenty  of 
the  enemy's  horse  over  the  river,  and  had  secured  the 
pass,  and  desired  my  lord  would  march  up  to  him 
immediately. 

'Tis  a  strange  thing  that  men's  spirits  should  be  sub- 
jected to  such  sudden  changes,  and  capable  of  so  much 
alteration  from  shadows  of  things.  They  were  for 
running  before  they  saw  the  enemy,  now  they  are  in 
haste  to  be  led  on,  and  but  that  in  raw  men  we  are 
obliged  to  bear  with  anything,  the  disorder  in  both  was 
intolerable. 

The  story  was  a  premeditated  sham,  and  not  a  word 
of  truth  in  it,  invented  to  raise  their  spirits,  and  cheat 
them  out  of  their  cowardly  phlegmatic  apprehensions,  and 
my  lord  had  his  end  in  it ;  for  they  were  all  on  fire  to 
fall  on.  And  I  am  persuaded,  had  they  been  led  im- 
mediately into  a  battle  begun  to  their  hands,  they  would 
have  laid  about  them  like  furies ;  for  there  is  nothing 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     139 

like  victory  to  flush  a  young  soldier.  Thus,  while  the 
humour  was  high,  and  the  fermentation  lasted,  away  we 
marched,  and,  passing  one  of  their  great  commons, 
which  they  call  moors,  we  came  to  the  river,  as  he  called 
it,  where  our  lieutenant  was  posted  with  his  four  men ; 
'twas  a  little  brook  fordable  with  ease,  and,  leaving  a 
guard  at  the  pass,  we  advanced  to  the  top  of  a  small 
ascent,  from  whence  we  had  a  fair  view  of  the  Scots 
army,  as  they  lay  behind  another  river  larger  than  the 
former. 

Our  men  were  posted  well  enough,  behind  a  small 
enclosure,  with  a  narrow  lane  in  their  front.  And  my 
lord  had  caused  his  dragoons  to  be  placed  in  the  front 
to  line  the  hedges  ;  and  in  this  posture  he  stood  view- 
ing the  enemy  at  a  distance.  The  Scots,  who  had 
some  intelligence  of  our  coming,  drew  out  three  small 
parties,  and  sent  them  by  different  ways  to  observe  our 
number  ;  and,  forming  a  fourth  party,  which  I  guessed 
to  be  about  600  horse,  advanced  to  the  top  of  the  plain, 
and  drew  up  to  face  us,  but  never  offered  to  attack  us. 

One  of  the  small  parties,  making  about  100  men, 
one  third  foot,  passes  upon  our  flank  in  view,  but  out 
of  reach ;  and,  as  they  marched,  shouted  at  us,  which 
our  men,  better  pleased  with  that  work  than  with  fight- 
ing, readily  enough  answered,  and  would  fain  have 
fired  at  them  for  the  pleasure  of  making  a  noise,  for 
they  were  too  far  off  to  hit  them. 

I  observed  that  these  parties  had  always  some  foot 
with  them  ;  and  yet  if  the  horse  galloped,  or  pushed 
on  ever  so  forward,  the  foot  were  as  forward  as  they, 
which  was  an  extraordinary  advantage. 

Gustavus  Adolphus,  that  king  of  soldiers,  was  the 
first  that  I  have  ever  observed  found  the  advantage  of 
mixing  small  bodies  of  musketeers  among  his  horse ; 
and,  had  he  had  such  nimble  strong  fellows  as  these,  he 
would  have  prized  them  above  all  the  rest  of  his  men. 


140     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

These  were  those  they  call  Highlanders.  They  would 
run  on  foot  with  their  arms  and  all  their  accoutrements, 
and  keep  very  good  order  too,  and  yet  keep  pace  with 
the  horse,  let  them  go  at  what  rate  they  would.  When 
I  saw  the  foot  thus  interlined  among  the  horse,  together 
with  the  way  of  ordering  their  flying  parties,  it  presently 
occurred  to  my  mind  that  here  was  some  of  our  old 
Scots  come  home  out  of  Germany  that  had  the  ordering 
of  matters,  and  if  so,  I  knew  we  were  not  a  match  for 
them. 

Thus  we  stood  facing  the  enemy  till  our  scouts 
brought  us  word  the  whole  Scots  army  was  in  motion, 
and  in  full  march  to  attack  us ;  and,  though  it  was  not 
true,  and  the  fear  of  our  men  doubled  every  object,  yet 
'twas  thought  convenient  to  make  our  retreat.  The 
whole  matter  was  that  the  scouts  having  informed  them 
what  they  could  of  our  strength,  the  600  were  ordered 
to  march  towards  us,  and  three  regiments  of  foot  were 
drawn  out  to  support  the  horse. 

I  know  not  whether  they  would  have  ventured  to 
attack  us,  at  least  before  their  foot  had  come  up ;  but 
whether  they  would  have  put  it  to  the  hazard  or  no, 
we  were  resolved  not  to  hazard  the  trial,  so  we  drew 
down  to  the  pass.  And,  as  retreating  looks  something 
like  running  away,  especially  when  an  enemy  is  at 
hand,  our  men  had  much  ado  to  make  their  retreat 
pass  for  a  march,  and  not  a  flight ;  and,  by  their  often 
looking  behind  them,  anybody  might  know  what  they 
would  have  done  if  they  had  been  pressed. 

I  confess,  I  was  heartily  ashamed  when  the  Scots, 
coming  up  to  the  place  where  we  had  been  posted, 
stood  and  shouted  at  us.  I  would  have  persuaded  my 
lord  to  have  charged  them,  and  he  would  have  done 
it  with  all  his  heart,  but  he  saw  it  was  not  practicable ; 
so  we  stood  at  gaze  with  them  above  two  hours,  t>y 
which  time  their  foot  were  come  up  to  them,  and  yet 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     141 

they  did  not  offer  to  attack  us.  I  never  was  so  ashamed 
of  myself  in  my  life ;  we  were  all  dispirited.  The  Scots 
gentlemen  would  come  out  singly,  within  shot  of  our 
post,  which  in  a  time  of  war  is  always  accounted  a 
challenge  to  any  single  gentleman,  to  come  out  and 
exchange  a  pistol  with  them,  and  nobody  would  stir ; 
at  last  our  old  lieutenant  rides  out  to  meet  a  Scotchman 
that  came  pickeering  on  his  quarter.  This  lieutenant 
was  a  brave  and  a  strong  fellow,  had  been  a  soldier 
in  the  Low  Countries  ;  and  though  he  was  not  of  any 
quality,  only  a  mere  soldier,  had  his  preferment  for 
his  conduct.  He  gallops  bravely  up  to  his  adversary, 
and  exchanging  their  pistols,  the  lieutenant's  horse  hap- 
pened to  be  killed.  The  Scotchman  very  gene- 
rously dismounts,  and  engages  him  with  his  sword,  and 
fairly  masters  him,  and  carries  him  away  prisoner ; 
and  I  think  this  horse  was  all  the  blood  was  shed  in 
that  war. 

The  lieutenant's  name  thus  conquered  was  English, 
and  as  he  was  a  very  stout  old  soldier,  the  disgrace 
of  it  broke  his  heart.  The  Scotchman,  indeed,  used 
him  very  generously ;  for  he  treated  him  in  the  camp 
very  courteously,  gave  him  another  horse,  and  set  him  at 
liberty,  gratis.  But  the  man  laid  it  so  to  heart,  that 
he  never  would  appear  in  the  army,  but  went  home  to 
his  own  country  and  died. 

I  had  enough  of  party-making,  and  was  quite  sick 
with  indignation  at  the  cowardice  of  the  men ;  and 
my  lord  was  in  as  great  a  fret  as  I,  but  there  was  no 
remedy.  We  durst  not  go  about  to  retreat,  for  we 
should  have  been  in  such  confusion  that  the  enemy 
must  have  discovered  it :  so  my  lord  resolved  to  keep 
the  post,  if  possible,  and  send  to  the  king  for  some 
foot.  Then  were  our  men  ready  to  fight  with  one 
another  who  should  be  the  messenger  ;  and  at  last  when 
a  lieutenant  with  twenty  dragoons  was  despatched,  he 


142     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

told  us  afterwards  he  found  himself  an  hundred  strong 
before  he  was  gotten  a  mile  from  the  place. 

In  short,  as  soon  as  ever  the  day  declined,  and  the 
dusk  of  the  evening  began  to  shelter  the  designs  of  the 
men,  they  dropped  away  from  us  one  by  one ;  and  at  last 
in  such  numbers,  that  if  we  had  stayed  till  the  morning, 
we  had  not  had  fifty  men  left,  out  of  1200  horse  and 
dragoons. 

When  I  saw  how  it  was,  consulting  with  some  of 
the  officers,  we  all  went  to  my  Lord  Holland,  and 
pressed  him  to  retreat,  before  the  enemy  should  discern 
the  flight  of  our  men  ;  so  he  drew  us  off,  and  we  came 
to  the  camp  the  next  morning,  in  the  shamefullest  con- 
dition that  ever  poor  men  could  do.  And  this  was  the 
end  of  the  worst  expedition  ever  I  made  in  my  life. 

To  fight  and  be  beaten  is  a  casualty  common  to  a 
soldier,  and  I  have  since  had  enough  of  it ;  but  to  run 
away  at  the  sight  of  an  enemy,  and  neither  strike  or  be 
stricken,  this  is  the  very  shame  of  the  profession,  and 
no  man  that  has  done  it  ought  to  show  his  face  again 
in  the  field,  unless  disadvantages  of  place  or  number 
make  it  tolerable,  neither  of  which  was  our  case. 

My  Lord  Holland  made  another  march  a  few  days 
after,  in  hopes  to  retrieve  this  miscarriage ;  but  I  had 
enough  of  it,  so  I  kept  in  my  quarters.  And  though 
his  men  did  not  desert  him  as  before,  yet  upon  the 
appearance  of  the  enemy  they  did  not  think  fit  to  fight, 
and  came  off  with  but  little  more  honour  than  they  did 
before. 

There  was  no  need  to  go  out  to  seek  the  enemy 
after  this,  for  they  came,  as  I  have  noted,  and  pitched 
in  sight  of  us,  and  their  parties  came  up  every  day  to 
the  very  out-works  of  Berwick,  but  nobody  cared  to 
meddle  with  them.  And  in  this  posture  things  stood 
when  the  pacification  was  agreed  on  by  both  parties, 
which,  like  a  short  truce,  only  gave  both  sides  breath 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     143 

to  prepare  for  a  new  war  more  ridiculously  managed 
than  the  former.  When  the  treaty  was  so  near  a  con- 
clusion as  that  conversation  was  admitted  on  both  sides, 
I  went  over  to  the  Scotch  camp  to  satisfy  my  curiosity, 
as  many  of  our  English  officers  did  also. 

I  confess  the  soldiers  made  a  very  uncouth  figure, 
especially  the  Highlanders.  The  oddness  and  bar- 
barity of  their  garb  and  arms  seemed  to  have  something 
in  it  remarkable. 

They  were  generally  tall  swinging  fellows ;  their 
swords  were  extravagantly,  and,  I  think,  insignificantly 
broad,  and  they  carried  great  wooden  targets,  large 
enough  to  cover  the  upper  part  of  their  bodies.  Their 
dress  was  as  antique  as  the  rest ;  a  cap  on  their  heads, 
called  by  them  a  bonnet,  long  hanging  sleeves  behind, 
and  their  doublet,  breeches,  and  stockings  of  a  stuff 
they  called  plaid,  striped  across  red  and  yellow,  with 
short  cloaks  of  the  same.  These  fellows  looked,  when 
drawn  out,  like  a  regiment  of  merry  andrews,  ready 
for  Bartholomew  Fair.  They  are  in  companies  all  of 
a  name,  and  therefore  call  one  another  only  by  their 
Christian  names,  as  Jemmy,  Jockey,  that  is,  John,  and 
Sawny,  that  is,  Alexander,  and  the  like.  And  they 
scorn  to  be  commanded  but  by  one  of  their  own  clan 
or  family.  They  are  all  gentlemen,  and  proud  enough 
to  be  kings.  The  meanest  fellow  among  them  is  as 
tenacious  of  his  honour  as  the  best  nobleman  in  the 
country,  and  they  will  fight  and  cut  one  another's 
throats  for  every  trifling  affront. 

But  to  their  own  clans  or  lairds,  they  are  the  willing- 
est  and  most  obedient  fellows  in  nature.  Give  them 
their  due,  were  their  skill  in  exercises  and  discipline 
proportioned  to  their  courage,  they  would  make  the 
bravest  soldiers  in  the  world.  They  are  large  bodies, 
and  prodigiously  strong ;  and  two  qualities  they  have 
above  other  nations,  viz.,  hardy  to  endure  hunger,  cold, 


144     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

and  hardships,  and  wonderfully  swift  of  foot.  The 
latter  is  such  an  advantage  in  the  field  that  I  know  none 
like  it ;  for  if  they  conquer,  no  enemy  can  escape 
them,  and  if  they  run,  even  the  horse  can  hardly  over- 
take them.  These  were  some  of  them,  who,  as  I 
observed  before,  went  out  in  parties  with  their  horse. 

There  were  three  or  four  thousand  of  these  in  the 
Scots  army,  armed  only  with  swords  and  targets  ;  and 
in  their  belts  some  of  them  had  a  pistol,  but  no  muskets 
at  that  time  among  them. 

But  there  were  also  a  great  many  regiments  of  dis- 
ciplined men,  who,  by  their  carrying  their  arms,  looked 
as  if  they  understood  their  business,  and  by  their  faces, 
that  they  durst  see  an  enemy. 

I  had  not  been  half-an-hour  in  their  camp  after 
the  ceremony  of  giving  our  names,  and  passing  their 
out-guards  and  main-guard  was  over,  but  I  was  saluted 
by  several  of  my  acquaintance ;  and  in  particular,  by 
one  who  led  the  Scotch  volunteers  at  the  taking  the 
castle  of  Oppenheim,  of  which  I  have  given  an  account. 
They  used  me  with  all  the  respect  they  thought  due  to 
me,  on  account  of  old  affairs,  gave  me  the  word,  and 
a  sergeant  waited  upon  me  whenever  I  pleased  to  go 
abroad. 

I  continued  twelve  or  fourteen  days  among  them, 
till  the  pacification  was  concluded ;  and  they  were 
ordered  to  march  home.  They  spoke  very  respectfully 
of  the  king,  but  I  found  were  exasperated  to  the 
last  degree  at  Archbishop  Laud  and  the  English 
bishops,  for  endeavouring  to  impose  the  Common  Prayer 
Book  upon  them  ;  and  they  always  talked  with  the 
utmost  contempt  of  our  soldiers  and  army.  I  always 
waived  the  discourse  about  the  clergy,  and  the  occasion 
of  the  war,  but  I  could  not  but  be  too  sensible  what 
they  said  of  our  men  was  true  ;  and  by  this  I  perceived 
they  had  an  universal  intelligence  from  among  us,  both 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     145 

of  what  we  were  doing,  and  what  sort  of  people  we 
were  that  were  doing  it ;  and  they  were  mighty  desirous 
of  coming  to  blows  with  us.  I  had  an  invitation  from 
their  general,  but  I  declined  it,  lest  I  should  give 
offence.  I  found  they  accepted  the  pacificatiou  as  a 
thing  not  likely  to  hold,  or  that  they  did  not  design 
should  hold  ;  and  that  they  were  resolved  to  keep  their 
forces  on  foot,  notwithstanding  the  agreement.  Their 
whole  army  was  full  of  brave  officers,  men  of  as  much 
experience  and  conduct  as  any  in  the  world  ;  and  all 
men  who  know  anything  of  the  war,  know  good  officers 
presently  make  a  good  army. 

Things  being  thus  huddled  up,  the  English  came 
back  to  York,  where  the  army  separated,  and  the 
Scots  went  home  to  increase  theirs  ;  for  1  easily  fore- 
saw that  peace  was  the  farthest  thing  from  their 
thoughts. 

The  next  year  the  flame  broke  out  again.  The  king 
draws  his  forces  down  into  the  north,  as  before,  and 
expresses  were  sent  to  all  the  gentlemen  that  had 
commands  to  be  at  the  place  by  the  1 5th  of  July.  As 
I  had  accepted  of  no  command  in  the  army,  so  I  had 
no  inclination  at  all  to  go,  for  I  foresaw  there  would 
be  nothing  but  disgrace  attend  it.  My  father,  observing 
such  an  alteration  in  my  usual  forwardness,  asked  me 
one  day  what  was  the  matter,  that  I  who  used  to  be 
so  forward  to  go  into  the  army,  and  so  eager  to  run 
abroad  to  fight,  now  showed  no  inclination  to  appear 
when  the  service  of  the  king  and  country  called  me  to 
it  ?  I  told  him  I  had  as  much  zeal  as  ever  for  the 
king's  service,  and  for  the  country  too  :  but  he  knew 
a  soldier  could  not  abide  to  be  beaten  ;  and  being  from 
thence  a  little  more  inquisitive,  I  told  him  the  observa- 
tions I  had  made  in  the  Scots  army,  and  the  people  I 
had  conversed  with  there.  "And,  sir,"  says  I,  "  assure 
yourself,  if  the  king  offers  to  fight  them,  he  will  be 


146     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

beaten  ;  and  I  don't  We  to  engage  when  my  judgment 
tells  me  beforehand  I  shall  be  worsted."  And  as  I 
had  foreseen,  it  came  to  pass ;  for  the  Scots  resolving 
to  proceed,  never  stood  upon  the  ceremony  of  aggression, 
as  before,  but  on  the  2Oth  of  August  they  entered 
England  with  their  army. 

However,  as  my  father  desired,  I  went  to  the  king's 
army,  which  was  then  at  York,  but  not  gotten  all 
together.  The  king  himself  was  at  London,  but  upon 
this  news  takes  post  for  the  army,  and  advancing  a  part 
of  his  forces,  he  posted  the  Lord  Conway  and  Sir 
Jacob  Astley,  with  a  brigade  of  foot  and  some  horse, 
at  Newburn,  upon  the  river  Tyne,  to  keep  the  Scots 
from  passing  that  river. 

The  Scots  could  have  passed  the  Tyne  without 
fighting ;  but  to  let  us  see  that  they  were  able  to  force 
their  passage,  they  fall  upon  this  body  of  men,  and 
notwithstanding  all  the  advantages  of  the  place,  they 
beat  them  from  the  post,  took  their  baggage  and  two 
pieces  of  cannon,  with  some  prisoners.  Sir  Jacob 
Astley  made  what  resistance  he  could,  but  the  Scots 
charged  with  so  much  fury,  and  being  also  overpowered, 
he  was  soon  put  into  confusion.  Immediately  the  Scots 
made  themselves  masters  of  Newcastle,  and  the  next 
day  of  Durham,  and  laid  those  two  counties  under  in- 
tolerable contributions. 

Now  was  the  king  absolutely  ruined  ;  for  among  his 
own  people  the  discontents  before  were  so  plain,  that 
had  the  clergy  had  any  forecast,  they  would  never  have 
embroiled  him  with  the  Scots,  till  he  had  fully  brought 
matters  to  an  understanding  at  home.  But  the  case  was 
thus :  the  king,  by  the  good  husbandry  of  Bishop 
Juxon,  his  treasurer,  had  a  million  of  ready  money  in 
his  treasury,  and  upon  that  account,  having  no  need 
of  a  Parliament,  had  not  called  one  in  twelve  years : 
and  perhaps  had  never  called  another,  if  he  had  not 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     147 

by  this  unhappy  circumstance  been  reduced  to  a  neces- 
sity of  it ;  for  now  this  ready  money  was  spent  in  two 
foolish  expeditions,  and  his  army  appeared  in  a  con- 
dition not  fit  to  engage  the  Scots.  The  detachment 
under  Sir  Jacob  Astley,  which  were  of  the  flower  of 
his  men,  had  been  routed  at  Newburn,  and  the  enemy 
had  possession  of  two  entire  counties. 

All  men  blamed  Laud  for  prompting  the  king  to 
provoke  the  Scots,  a  headstrong  nation,  and  zealous  for 
their  own  way  of  worship ;  and  Laud  himself  found 
too  late  the  consequences  of  it,  both  to  the  whole  cause 
and  to  himself;  for  the  Scots,  whose  native  temper  is 
not  easily  to  forgive  an  injury,  pursued  him  by  their 
party  in  England,  and  never  gave  it  over  till  they  laid 
his  head  on  the  block. 

The  ruined  country  now  clamoured  in  his  Majesty's 
ears  with  daily  petitions,  and  the  gentry  of  other  neigh- 
bouring counties  cry  out  for  peace  and  a  Parliament. 
The  king,  embarrassed  with  these  difficulties,  and  quite 
empty  of  money,  calls  a  great  council  of  the  nobility  at 
York,  and  demands  their  advice,  which  any  one  could 
have  told  him  before  would  be  to  call  a  Parliament. 

I  cannot,  without  regret,  look  back  upon  the  mis- 
fortune of  the  king,  who,  as  he  was  one  of  the  best 
princes  in  his  personal  conduct  that  ever  reigned  in 
England,  had  yet  some  of  the  greatest  unhappinesses  in 
his  conduct  as  a  king,  that  ever  prince  had,  and  the 
whole  course  of  his  life  demonstrated  it. 

1.  An  impolitic  honesty.      His  enemies  called  it 
obstinacy ;  but  as  I  was  perfectly  acquainted  with  his 
temper,  I  cannot  but  think  it  was  his  judgment,  when 
he  thought  he  was  in  the  right,  to  adhere  to  it  as  a  duty 
though  against  his  interest. 

2.  Too  much  compliance  when  he  was  complying. 
No  man  but   himself  would  have  denied  what  at 

some  times  he  denied,  and  have  granted  what  at  other 


148     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

times  he    granted  ;    and    this    uncertainty  of  counsel 
proceeded  from  two  things. 

1.  The  heat  of  the  clergy,  to  whom  he  was  ex- 
ceedingly devoted,  and  for  whom,  indeed,  he  ruined 
himself. 

2.  The  wisdom  of  his  nobility. 

Thus  when  the  counsel  of  his  priests  prevailed,  all 
was  fire  and  fury ;  the  Scots  were  rebels,  and  must 
be  subdued,  and  the  Parliament's  demands  were  to 
be  rejected  as  exorbitant.  But  whenever  the  king's 
judgment  was  led  by  the  grave  and  steady  advice  of 
his  nobility  and  counsellors,  he  was  always  inclined  by 
them  to  temperate  his  .measures  between  the  two 
extremes.  And  had  he  gone  on  in  such  a  temper,  he 
had  never  met  with  the  misfortunes  which  afterward 
attended  him,  or  had  so  many  thousands  of  his  friends 
lost  their  lives  and  fortunes  in  his  service. 

I  am  sure  we  that  knew  what  it  was  to  fight  for 
him,  and  that  loved  him  better  than  any  of  the  clergy 
could  pretend  to,  have  had  many  a  consultation  how 
to  bring  over  our  master  from  so  espousing  their 
interest,  as  to  ruin  himself  for  it ;  but  '  twas  in  vain. 

I  took  this  interval  when  I  sat  still  and  only  looked 
on,  to  make  these  remarks,  because  I  remember  the 
best  friends  the  king  had  were  at  this  time  of  that 
opinion,  that  'twas  an  unaccountable  piece  of  in- 
discretion, to  commence  a  quarrel  with  the  Scots,  a 
poor  and  obstinate  people,  for  a  ceremony  and  book  of 
Church  discipline,  at  a  time  when  the  king  stood  but 
upon  indifferent  terms  with  his  people  at  home. 

The  consequence  was,  it  put  arms  into  the  hands  of 
his  subjects  to  rebel  against  him ;  it  embroiled  him 
with  his  Parliament  in  England,  to  whom  he  was  fain 
to  stoop  in  a  fatal  and  unusual  manner  to  get  money, 
all  his  own  being  spent,  and  so  to  buy  off  the  Scots 
whom  he  could  not  beat  off. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     149 

I  cannot  but  give  one  instance  of  the  unaccountable 
politics  of  his  ministers.  If  they  overruled  this  un- 
happy king  to  it,  with  design  to  exhaust  and  impoverish 
him,  they  were  the  worst  of  traitors ;  if  not,  the 
grossest  of  fools.  They  prompted  the  king  to  equip  a 
fleet  against  the  Scots,  and  to  put  on  board  it  5000 
land  men.  Had  this  been  all,  the  design  had  been 
good,  that  while  the  king  had  faced  the  army  upon  the 
borders,  these  5000,  landing  in  the  Firth  of  Edinburgh, 
might  have  put  that  whole  nation  into  disorder.  But 
in  order  to  this,  they  advised  the  king  to  lay  out  his 
money  in  fitting  out  the  biggest  ships  he  had,  and  the 
"  Royal  Sovereign,"  the  biggest  ship  the  world  had  ever 
seen,  which  cost  him  no  less  than  <£  100,000,  was 
now  built,  and  fitted  out  for  this  voyage. 

This  was  the  most  incongruous  and  ridiculous 
advice  that  could  be  given,  and  made  us  all  believe  we 
were  betrayed,  though  we  knew  not  by  whom. 

To  fit  out  ships  of  100  guns  to  invade  Scotland, 
which  had  not  one  man-of-war  in  the  world,  nor  any 
open  confederacy  with  any  prince  or  state  that  had 
any  fleet,  'twas  a  most  ridiculous  thing.  An  hundred 
sail  of  Newcastle  colliers,  to  carry  the  men  with  their 
stores  and  provisions,  and  ten  frigates  of  40  guns  each, 
had  been  as  good  a  fleet  as  reason  and  the  nature  of 
the  thing  could  have  made  tolerable. 

Thus  things  were  carried  on,  till  the  king,  beggared 
by  the  mismanagement  of  his  counsels,  and  beaten 
Jby  the  Scots,  was  driven  to  the  necessity  of  calling  a 
x'arliament  in  England. 

It  is  not  my  design  to  enter  into  the  feuds  and  brangles 
of  this  Parliament.  I  have  noted,  by  observations  of 
their  mistakes,  who  brought  the  king  to  this  happy 
necessity  of  calling  them. 

His  Majesty  had  tried  Parliament  upon  several 
occasions  before,  but  never  found  himself  so  much 


150     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

embroiled  with  them  but  he  could  send  them  home, 
and  there  was  an  end  of  it ;  but  as  he  could  not  avoid 
calling  these,  so  they  took  care  to  put  him  out  of  a 
condition  to  dismiss  them. 

The  Scots  army  was  now  quartered  upon  the  English. 
The  counties,  the  gentry,  and  the  assembly  of  lords  at 
York,  petitioned  for  a  Parliament. 

The  Scots  presented  their  demands  to  the  king,  in 
which  it  was  observed  that  matters  were  concerted 
between  them  and  a  party  in  England ;  and  I  confess 
when  I  saw  that,  I  began  to  think  the  king  in  an  ill 
case ;  for  as  the  Scots  pretended  grievances,  we  thought, 
the  king  redressing  those  grievances,  they  could  ask  no 
more  ;  and  therefore  all  men  advised  the  king  to  grant 
their  full  demands.  And  whereas  the  king  had  not 
money  to  supply  the  Scots  in  their  march  home,  I 
know  there  were  several  meetings  of  gentlemen  with  a 
design  to  advance  considerable  sums  of  money  to  the 
king  to  set  him  free,  and  in  order  to  reinstate  his 
Majesty,  as  before.  Not  that  we  ever  advised  the 
king  to  rule  without  a  Parliament,  but  we  were  very 
desirous  of  putting  him  out  of  the  necessity  of  calling 
them,  at  least  just  then. 

But  the  eighth  article  of  the  Scots'  demands  expressly 
required,  that  an  English  Parliament  might  be  called 
to  remove  all  obstructions  of  commerce,  and  to  settle 
peace,  religion,  and  liberty ;  and  in  another  article  they 
tell  the  king,  the  24th  of  September  being  the  time  his 
Majesty  appointed  for  the  meeting  of  the  peers,  will 
make  it  too  long  ere  the  Parliament  meet.  And  in 
another,  that  a  Parliament  was  the  only  way  of 
settling  peace,  and  bring  them  to  his  Majesty's  obe- 
dience. 

When  we  saw  this  in  the  army,  'twas  time  to  look 
about.  Everybody  perceived  that  the  Scots  army  would 
call  an  English  Parliament;  and  whatever  aversion  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     151 

king  had  to  it,  we  all  saw  he  would  be  obliged  to 
comply  with  it ;  and  now  they  all  began  to  see  their 
error,  who  advised  the  king  to  this  Scotch  war. 

While  these  things  were  transacting,  the  assembly 
of  the  peers  meet  at  York,  and  by  their  advice  a 
treaty  was  begun  with  the  Scots.  I  had  the  honour 
to  be  sent  with  the  first  message  which  was  in  writing. 

I  brought  it,  attended  by  a  trumpet  and  a  guard  of 
500  horse,  to  the  Scots  quarters.  I  was  stopped  at 
Darlington,  and  my  errand  being  known,  General 
Leslie  sent  a  Scots  major  and  fifty  horse  to  receive 
me,  but  would  let  neither  my  trumpet  or  guard  set 
foot  within  their  quarters.  In  this  manner  I  was 
conducted  to  audience  in  the  chapter-house  at  Durham, 
where  a  committee  of  Scots  lords  who  attended  the 
army  received  me  very  courteously,  and  gave  me  their 
answer  in  writing  also. 

'Twas  in  this  answer  that  they  showed,  at  least  to  me, 
their  design  of  embroiling  the  king  with  his  English 
subjects  ;  they  discoursed  very  freely  with  me,  and  did 
not  order  me  to  withdraw  when  they  debated  their 
private  opinions.  They  drew  up  several  answers  but 
did  not  like  them  ;  at  last  they  gave  me  one  which  I 
did  not  receive,  I  thought  it  was  too  insolent  to  be 
borne  with.  As  near  as  I  can  remember  it  was  thus  : 
The  commissioners  of  Scotland  attending  the  service 
in  the  army,  do  refuse  any  treaty  in  the  city  of 
York. 

One  of  the  commissioners  who  treated  me  with  more 
distinction  than  the  rest,  and  discoursed  freely  with  me, 
gave  me  an  opportunity  to  speak  more  freely  of  this 
than  I  expected. 

I  told  them  if  they  would  return  to  his  Majesty  an 
answer  fit  for  me  to  carry,  or  if  they  would  say  they 
would  not  treat  at  all,  I  would  deliver  such  a  message. 
But  I  entreated  them  to  consider  the  answer  was  to 


152     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

their  sovereign,  and  to  whom  they  made  a  great  pro- 
fession of  duty  and  respect,  and  at  least  they  ought  to 
give  their  reasons  why  they  declined  a  treaty  at  York, 
and  to  name  some  other  place,  or  humbly  to  desire  his 
Majesty  to  name  some  other  place ;  but  to  send  word 
they  would  not  treat  at  York,  I  could  deliver  no  such 
message,  for  when  put  into  English  it  would  signify 
they  would  not  treat  at  all. 

I  used  a  great  many  reasons  and  arguments  with 
them  on  this  head,  and  at  last  with  some  difficulty 
obtained  of  them  to  give  the  reason,  which  was  the 
Earl  of  Strafford's  having  the  chief  command  at  York, 
whom  they  declared  their  mortal  enemy,  he  having 
declared  them  rebels  in  Ireland. 

With  this  answer  I  returned.  I  could  make  no 
observations  in  the  short  time  I  was  with  them,  for  as 
I  stayed  but  one  night,  so  I  was  guarded  as  a  close 
prisoner  all  the  while.  I  saw  several  of  their  officers 
whom  I  knew,  but  they  durst  not  speak  to  me,  and  if 
they  would  have  ventured,  my  guard  would  not  have 
permitted  them. 

In  this  manner  I  was  conducted  out  of  their  quarters 
to  my  own  party  again,  and  having  delivered  my  message 
to  the  king  and  told  his  Majesty  the  circumstances, 
I  saw  the  king  receive  the  account  of  the  haughty 
behaviour  of  the  Scots  with  some  regret ;  however,  it 
was  his  Majesty's  time  now  to  bear,  and  therefore  the 
Scots  were  complied  with,  and  the  treaty  appointed  at 
Ripon ;  where,  after  much  debate,  several  preliminary 
articles  were  agreed  on,  as  a  cessation  of  arms,  quarters, 
and  bounds  to  the  armies,  subsistence  to  the  Scots 
army,  and  the  residue  of  the  demands  was  referred 
to  a  treaty  at  London,  &c. 

We  were  all  amazed  at  the  treaty,  and  I  cannot  but 
remember  we  used  to  wish  much  rather  we  had  been 
suffered  to  fight ;  for  though  we  had  been  worsted  at 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     153 

first,  the  power  and  strength  of  the  king's  interest, 
which  was  not  yet  tried,  must,  in  fine,  have  been  too 
strong  for  the  Scots,  whereas  now  we  saw  the  king 
was  for  complying  with  anything,  and  all  his  friends 
would  be  ruined. 

I  confess  I  had  nothing  to  fear,  and  so  was  not  much 
concerned,  but  our  predictions  soon  came  to  pass,  for 
no  sooner  was  this  Parliament  called  but  abundance  of 
those  who  had  embroiled  their  king  with  his  people  of 
both  kingdoms,  like  the  disciples  when  their  Master  was 
betrayed  to  the  Jews,  forsook  him  and  fled ;  and  now 
Parliament  tyranny  began  to  succeed  Church  tyranny, 
and  we  soldiers  were  glad  to  see  it  at  first.  The 
bishops  trembled,  the  judges  went  to  gaol,  the  officers 
of  the  customs  were  laid  hold  on  ;  and  the  Parliament 
began  to  lay  their  fingers  on  the  great  ones,  particularly 
Archbishop  Laud  and  the  Earl  of  StrafFord.  We 
had  no  great  concern  for  the  first,  but  the  last  was  a 
man  of  so  much  conduct  and  gallantry,  and  so  beloved 
by  the  soldiers  and  principal  gentry  of  England,  that 
everybody  was  touched  with  his  misfortune. 

The  Parliament  now  grew  mad  in  their  turn,  and 
as  the  prosperity  of  any  party  is  the  time  to  show 
their  discretion,  the  Parliament  showed  they  knew  as 
little  where  to  stop  as  other  people.  The  king  was 
not  in  a  condition  to  deny  anything,  and  nothing  could 
be  demanded  but  they  pushed  it.  They  attainted  the 
Earl  of  Strafford,  and  thereby  made  the  king  cut  off 
his  right  hand  to  save  his  left,  and  yet  not  save  it 
neither.  They  obtained  another  bill  to  empower  them 
to  sit  during  their  own  pleasure,  and  after  them,  tri- 
ennial Parliaments  to  meet,  whether  the  king  call 
them  or  no  ;  and  granting  this  completed  his  Majesty's 
ruin. 

Had  the  House  only  regulated  the  abuses  of  the 
court,  punished  evil  counsellors,  and  restored  Parlia- 


154     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

ments  to  their  original  and  just  powers,  all  had  been 
well,  and  the  king,  though  he  had  been  more  than 
mortified,  had  yet  reaped  the  benefit  of  future  peace ; 
for  now  the  Scots  were  sent  home,  after  having  eaten 
up  two  counties,  and  received  a  prodigious  sum  of 
money  to  boot.  And  the  king,  though  too  late,  goes 
in  person  to  Edinburgh,  and  grants  them  all  they  could 
desire,  and  more  than  they  asked ;  but  in  England, 
the  desires  of  ours  were  unbounded,  and  drove  at  all 
extremes. 

They  threw  out  the  bishops  from  sitting  in  the 
House,  make  a  protestation  equivalent  to  the  Scotch 
Covenant,  and  this  done,  print  their  remonstrance. 
This  so  provoked  the  king,  that  he  resolves  upon 
seizing  some  of  the  members,  and  in  an  ill  hour  enters 
the  House  in  person  to  take  them.  Thus  one  impru- 
dent thing  on  one  hand  produced  another  of  the  other 
hand,  till  the  king  was  obliged  to  leave  them  to  them- 
selves, for  fear  of  being  mobbed  into  something  or  other 
unworthy  of  himself. 

These  proceedings  began  to  alarm  the  gentry  and 
nobility  of  England  ;  for,  however  willing  we  were  to 
have  evil  counsellors  removed,  and  the  government 
return  to  a  settled  and  legal  course,  according  to  the 
happy  constitution  of  this  nation,  and  might  have  been 
forward  enough  to  have  owned  the  king  had  been 
misled,  and  imposed  upon  to  do  things  which  he  had 
rather  had  not  been  done,  yet  it  did  not  follow,  that 
all  the  powers  and  prerogatives  of  the  crown  should 
devolve  upon  the  Parliament,  and  the  king  in  a 
manner  be  deposed,  or  else  sacrificed  to  the  fury  of  the 
rabble. 

The  heats  of  the  House  running  them  thus  to  all 
extremes,  and  at  last  to  take  from  the  king  the  power 
of  the  militia,  which  indeed  was  all  that  was  left  to 
make  him  anything  of  a  king,  put  the  king  upon 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     155 

opposing  force  with  force ;  and  thus  the  flame  of  civil 
war  began. 

However  backward  I  was  in  engaging  in  the  second 
year's  expedition  against  the  Scots,  I  was  as  forward 
now,  for  I  waited  on  the  king  at  York,  where  a 
gallant  company  of  gentlemen  as  ever  were  seen  in 
England,  engaged  themselves  to  enter  into  his  service ; 
and  here  some  of  us  formed  ourselves  into  troops  for 
the  guard  of  his  person. 

The  king  having  been  waited  upon  by  the  gentry 
of  Yorkshire,  and  having  told  them  his  resolution  of 
erecting  his  royal  standard,  and  received  from  them 
hearty  assurances  of  support,  dismisses  them,  and 
marches  to  Hull,  where  lay  the  train  of  artillery,  and 
all  the  arms  and  ammunition  belonging  to  the  northern 
army  which  had  been  disbanded.  But  here  the 
Parliament  had  been  beforehand  with  his  Majesty, 
so  that  when  he  came  to  Hull,  he  found  the  gates 
shut,  and  Sir  John  Hotham,  the  governor,  upon  the 
walls,  though  with  a  great  deal  of  seeming  humility 
and  protestations  of  loyalty  to  his  person,  yet  with 
a  positive  denial  to  admit  any  of  the  king's  attendants 
into  the  town.  If  his  Majesty  pleased  to  enter  the 
town  in  person  with  any  reasonable  number  of  his 
household,  he  would  submit,  but  would  not  be  pre- 
vailed on  to  receive  the  king  as  he  would  be  received, 
with  his  forces,  though  those  forces  were  then  but 
very  few. 

The  king  was  exceedingly  provoked  at  this  repulse, 
and  indeed  it  was  a  great  surprise  to  us  all,  for 
certainly  never  prince  began  a  war  against  the  whole 
strength  of  his  kingdom  under  the  circumstances  that 
he  was  in.  He  had  not  a  garrison,  or  a  company  of 
soldiers  in  his  pay,  not  a  stand  of  arms,  or  a  barrel  of 
powder,  a  musket,  cannon  or  mortar,  not  a  ship  of  all 
the  fleet,  or  money  in  his  treasury  to  procure  them ; 


156     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

whereas  the  Parliament  had  all  his  navy,  and  ordnance, 
stores,  magazines,  arms,  ammunition,  and  revenue  in 
their  keeping.  And  this  I  take  to  be  another  defect 
of  the  king's  counsel,  and  a  sad  instance  of  the  dis- 
traction of  his  affairs,  that  when  he  saw  how  all 
things  were  going  to  wreck,  as  it  was  impossible  but 
he  should  see  it,  and  'tis  plain  he  did  see  it,  that  he 
should  not  long  enough  before  it  came  to  extremities 
secure  the  navy,  magazines,  and  stores  of  war,  in  the 
hands  of  his  trusty  servants,  that  would  have  been 
sure  to  have  preserved  them  for  his  use,  at  a  time  when 
he  wanted  them. 

It  cannot  be  supposed  but  the  gentry  of  England, 
who  generally  preserved  their  loyalty  for  their  royal 
master,  and  at  last  heartily  showed  it,  were  exceedingly 
discouraged  at  first  when  they  saw  the  Parliament  had 
all  the  means  of  making  war  in  their  own  hands,  and 
the  king  was  naked  and  destitute  either  of  arms  or 
ammunition,  or  money  to  procure  them.  Not  but 
that  the  king,  by  extraordinary  application,  recovered 
the  disorder  the  want  of  these  things  had  thrown  him 
into,  and  supplied  himself  with  all  things  needful. 

But  my  observation  was  this,  had  his  Majesty  had 
the  magazines,  navy,  and  forts  in  his  own  hand,  the 
gentry,  who  wanted  but  the  prospect  of  something  to 
encourage  them,  had  come  in  at  first,  and  the  Parlia- 
ment, being  unprovided,  would  have  been  presently  re- 
duced to  reason.  But  this  was  it  that  baulked  the  gentry 
of  Yorkshire,  who  went  home  again,  giving  the  king 
good  promises,  but  never  appeared  for  him,  till  by  raising 
a  good  army  in  Shropshire  and  Wales,  he  marched 
towards  London,  and  they  saw  there  was  a  prospect 
of  their  being  supported. 

In  this  condition  the  king  erected  his  standard  at 
Nottingham,  22nd  August  1642,  and  I  confess,  I 
had  very  melancholy  apprehensions  of  the  king's 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     157 

affairs,  for  the  appearance  to  the  royal  standard  was 
but  small.  The  affront  the  king  had  met  with  at  Hull, 
had  baulked  and  dispirited  the  northern  gentry,  and 
the  king's  affairs  looked  with  a  very  dismal  aspect. 
We  had  expresses  from  London  of  the  prodigious 
success  of  the  Parliament's  levies,  how  their  men  came 
in  faster  than  they  could  entertain  them,  and  that  arms 
were  delivered  out  to  whole  companies  listed  together, 
and  the  like.  And  all  this  while  the  king  had  not 
got  together  a  thousand  foot,  and  had  no  arms  for  them 
neither.  When  the  king  saw  this,  he  immediately 
despatches  five  several  messengers,  whereof  one  went 
to  the  Marquis  of  Worcester  into  Wales ;  one  went 
to  the  queen,  then  at  Windsor ;  one  to  the  Duke 
of  Newcastle,  then  Marquis  of  Newcastle,  into  the 
north  ;  one  into  Scotland  ;  and  one  into  France,  where 
the  queen  soon  after  arrived  to  raise  money,  and  buy 
arms,  and  to  get  what  assistance  she  could  among  her 
own  friends.  Nor  was  her  Majesty  idle,  for  she  sent 
over  several  ships  laden  with  arms  and  ammunition, 
with  a  fine  train  of  artillery,  and  a  great  many  very 
good  officers ;  and  though  one  of  the  first  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Parliament,  with  three  hundred  barrels  of 
powder  and  some  arms,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty 
gentlemen,  yet  most  of  the  gentlemen  found  means, 
one  way  or  other,  to  get  to  us,  and  most  of  the  ships 
the  queen  freighted  arrived ;  and  at  last  her  Majesty 
came  herself,  and  brought  an  extraordinary  supply 
both  of  men,  money,  arms,  &c.,  with  which  she  joined 
the  king's  forces  under  the  Earl  of  Newcastle  in  the 
north. 

Finding  his  Majesty  thus  bestirring  himself  to  muster 
his  friends  together,  I  asked  him  if  he  thought  it  might 
not  be  for  his  Majesty's  service  to  let  me  go  among 
my  friends,  and  his  loyal  subjects  about  Shrewsbury  ? 
"  Yes,"  says  the  king,  smiling,  "  I  intend  you  shall,  and 


158     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

I  design  to  go  with  you  myself."  I  did  not  understand 
what  the  king  meant  then,  and  did  not  think  it  good 
manners  to  inquire,  but  the  next  day  I  found  all  things 
disposed  for  a  march,  and  the  king  on  horseback  by 
eight  of  the  clock ;  when  calling  me  to  him,  he  told 
me  I  should  go  before,  and  let  my  father  and  all  my 
friends  know  he  would  be  at  Shrewsbury  the  Saturday 
following.  I  left  my  equipages,  and  taking  post  with 
only  one  servant,  was  at  my  father's  the  next  morning 
by  break  of  day.  My  father  was  not  surprised  at  the 
news  of  the  king's  coming  at  all,  for,  it  seems,  he, 
together  with  the  loyal  gentry  of  those  parts,  had  sent 
particularly  to  give  the  king  an  invitation  to  move  that 
way,  which  I  was  not  made  privy  to,  with  an  account 
what  encouragement  they  had  there  in  the  endeavours 
made  for  his  interest.  In  short,  the  whole  country 
was  entirely  for  the  king,  and  such  was  the  universal 
joy  the  people  showed  when  the  news  of  his  Majesty's 
coming  down  was  positively  known,  that  all  manner  of 
business  was  laid  aside,  and  the  whole  body  of  the 
people  seemed  to  be  resolved  upon  the  war. 

As  this  gave  a  new  face  to  the  king's  affairs,  so  I 
must  own  it  filled  me  with  joy ;  for  I  was  astonished 
before,  when  I  considered  what  the  king  and  his 
friends  were  like  to  be  exposed  to.  The  news  of  the 
proceedings  of  the  Parliament,  and  their  powerful  pre- 
parations, were  now  no  more  terrible ;  the  king  came 
at  the  time  appointed,  and  having  lain  at  my  father's 
house  one  night,  entered  Shrewsbury  in  the  morning. 
The  acclamations  of  the  people,  the  concourse  of  the 
nobility  and  gentry  about  his  person,  and  the  crowds 
which  now  came  every  day  into  his  standard,  were 
incredible. 

The  loyalty  of  the  English  gentry  was  not  only 
worth  notice,  but  the  power  of  the  gentry  is  extra- 
ordinary visible  in  this  matter.  The  king,  in  about 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     159 

six  weeks'  time,  which  was  the  most  of  his  stay  at 
Shrewsbury,  was  supplied  with  money,  arms,  ammuni- 
tion, and  a  train  of  artillery,  and  listed  a  body  of  an 
army  upwards  of  20,000  men. 

His  Majesty  seeing  the  general  alacrity  of  his  people, 
immediately  issued  out  commissions,  and  formed  regi- 
ments of  horse  and  foot ;  and  having  some  experienced 
officers  about  him,  together  with  about  sixteen  who 
came  from  France,  with  a  ship  loaded  with  arms  and 
some  field-pieces  which  came  very  seasonably  into  the 
Severn,  the  men  were  exercised,  regularly  disciplined, 
and  quartered,  and  now  we  began  to  look  like  soldiers. 
My  father  had  raised  a  regiment  of  horse  at  his  own 
charge,  and  completed  them,  and  the  king  gave  out 
arms  to  them  from  the  supplies  which  I  mentioned 
came  from  abroad.  Another  party  of  horse,  all  brave 
stout  fellows,  and  well  mounted,  came  in  from  Lanca- 
shire, and  the  Earl  of  Derby  at  the  head  of  them. 
The  Welshmen  came  in  by  droves ;  and  so  great  was 
the  concourse  of  people,  that  the  king  began  to  think 
of  marching,  and  gave  the  command,  as  well  as  the 
trust  of  regulating  the  army,  to  the  brave  Earl  of 
Lindsey,  as  general  of  the  foot.  The  Parliament 
general  being  the  Earl  of  Essex,  two  braver  men,  or 
two  better  officers,  were  not  in  the  kingdom ;  they 
had  both  been  old  soldiers,  and  had  served  together 
as  volunteers  in  the  Low  Country  wars,  under  Prince 
Maurice.  They  had  been  comrades  and  companions 
abroad,  and  now  came  to  face  one  another  as  enemies 
in  the  field. 

Such  was  the  expedition  used  by  the  king  and  his 
friends,  in  the  levies  of  this  first  army,  that  notwith- 
standing the  wonderful  expedition  the  Parliament  made, 
the  king  was  in  the  field  before  them ;  and  now  the 
gentry  in  other  parts  of  the  nation  bestirred  themselves, 
and  seized  upon,  and  garrisoned  several  considerable 


160     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

places,  for  the  king.  In  the  north,  the  Earl  of  New- 
castle not  only  garrisoned  the  most  considerable  places, 
but  even  the  general  possession  of  the  north  was  for 
the  king,  excepting  Hull,  and  some  few  places,  which 
the  old  Lord  Fairfax  had  taken  up  for  the  Parliament. 
On  the  other  hand,  entire  Cornwall  and  most  of  the 
western  counties  were  the  king's.  The  Parliament 
had  their  chief  interest  in  the  south  and  eastern  part 
of  England,  as  Kent,  Surrey,  and  Sussex,  Essex, 
Suffolk,  Norfolk,  Cambridge,  Bedford,  Huntington, 
Hertford,  Buckinghamshire,  and  the  other  midland 
counties.  These  were  called,  or  some  of  them  at  least, 
the  associated  counties,  and  felt  little  of  the  war,  other 
than  the  charges ;  but  the  main  support  of  the  Parlia- 
ment was  the  city  of  London. 

The  king  made  the  seat  of  his  court  at  Oxford, 
which  he  caused  to  be  regularly  fortified.  The  Lord 
Say  had  been  here,  and  had  possession  of  the  city  for 
the  enemy,  and  was  debating  about  fortifying  it,  but 
came  to  no  resolution,  which  was  a  very  great  over- 
sight in  them ;  the  situation  of  the  place,  and  the 
importance  of  it,  on  many  accounts,  to  the  city  of 
London,  considered ;  and  they  would  have  retrieved 
this  error  afterwards,  but  then  'twas  too  late ;  for  the 
king  made  it  the  headquarter,  and  received  great  sup- 
plies and  assistance  from  the  wealth  of  the  colleges, 
and  the  plenty  of  the  neighbouring  country.  Abingdon, 
Wallingford,  Basing,  and  Reading,  were  all  garrisoned 
and  fortified  as  outworks  to  defend  this  as  the  centre. 
And  thus  all  England  became  the  theatre  of  blood, 
and  war  was  spread  into  every  corner  of  the  country, 
though  as  yet  there  was  no  stroke  struck.  I  had  no 
command  in  this  army.  My  father  led  his  own  regi- 
ment, and,  old  as  he  was,  would  not  leave  his  royal 
master,  and  my  elder  brother  stayed  at  home  to  support 
the  family.  As  for  me,  I  rode  a  volunteer  in  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     161 

royal  troop  of  guards,  which  may  very  well  deserve 
the  title  of  a  royal  troop,  for  it  was  composed  of 
young  gentlemen,  sons  of  the  nobility,  and  some  of  the 
prime  gentry  of  the  nation,  and  I  think  not  a  person 
of  so  mean  a  birth  or  fortune  as  myself.  We  reckoned 
in  this  troop  two  and  thirty  lords,  or  who  came  after- 
wards to  be  such,  and  eight  and  thirty  of  younger  sons 
of  the  nobility,  five  French  noblemen,  and  all  the  rest 
gentlemen  of  very  good  families  and  estates. 

And  that  I  may  give  the  due  to  their  personal 
valour,  many  of  this  troop  lived  afterwards  to  have 
regiments  and  troops  under  their  command  in  the  ser- 
vice of  the  king,  many  of  them  lost  their  lives  for 
him,  and  most  of  them  their  estates.  Nor  did  they 
behave  unworthy  of  themselves  in  their  first  showing 
their  faces  to  the  enemy,  as  shall  be  mentioned  in  its 
place. 

While  the  king  remained  at  Shrewsbury,  his  loyal 
friends  bestirred  themselves  in  several  parts  of  the  king- 
dom. Goring  had  secured  Portsmouth,  but  being 
young  in  matters  of  war,  and  not  in  time  relieved,  though 
the  Marquis  of  Hertford  was  marching  to  relieve  him, 
yet  he  was  obliged  to  quit  the  place,  and  shipped  him- 
self for  Holland,  from  whence  he  returned  with  relief 
for  the  king,  and  afterwards  did  very  good  service  upon 
all  occasions,  and  so  effectually  cleared  himself  of  the 
scandal  the  hasty  surrender  of  Portsmouth  had  brought 
upon  his  courage. 

The  chief  power  of  the  king's  forces  lay  in  three 
places,  in  Cornwall,  in  Yorkshire,  and  at  Shrewsbury. 
In  Cornwall,  Sir  Ralph  Hopton,  afterwards  Lord 
Hopton,  Sir  Bevil  Grenvile,  and  Sir  Nicholas  Slan- 
ning  secured  all  the  country,  and  afterwards  spread 
themselves  over  Devonshire  and  Somersetshire,  took 
Exeter  from  the  Parliament,  fortified  Bridgewater  and 
Barnstaple,  and  beat  Sir  William  Waller  at  the  battle 


1 62     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

of  Roundway  Down,  as  I  shall  touch  at  more  particu- 
larly when  I  come  to  recite  the  part  of  my  own  travels 
that  way. 

In  the  north,  the  Marquis  of  Newcastle  secured  all 
the  country,  garrisoned  York,  Scarborough,  Carlisle, 
Newcastle,  Pomfret,  Leeds,  and  all  the  considerable 
places,  and  took  the  field  with  a  very  good  army,  though 
afterwards  he  proved  more  unsuccessful  than  the  rest, 
having  the  whole  power  of  a  kingdom  at  his  back,  the 
Scots  coming  in  with  an  army  to  the  assistance  of  the 
Parliament,  which,  indeed,  was  the  general  turn  of  the 
scale  of  the  war ;  for  had  it  not  been  for  this  Scots 
army,  the  king  had  most  certainly  reduced  the  Parlia- 
ment, at  least  to  good  terms  of  peace,  in  two  years' 
time. 

The  king  was  the  third  article.  His  force  at  Shrews- 
bury I  have  noted  already.  The  alacrity  of  the  gentry 
filled  him  with  hopes,  and  all  his  army  with  vigour,  and 
the  8th  of  October  1642,  his  Majesty  gave  orders  to 
march.  The  Earl  of  Essex  had  spent  above  a  month 
after  his  leaving  London  (for  he  went  thence  the  Qth 
of  September)  in  modelling  and  drawing  together  his 
forces  ;  his  rendezvous  was  at  St  Albans,  from  whence 
he  marched  to  Northampton,  Coventry,  and  Warwick, 
and  leaving  garrisons  in  them,  he  comes  on  to  Wor- 
cester. Being  thus  advanced,  he  possesses  Oxford,  as 
I  noted  before,  Banbury,  Bristol,  Gloucester,  and 
Worcester,  out  of  all  which  places,  except  Gloucester, 
we  drove  him  back  to  London  in  a  very  little  while. 

Sir  John  Byron  had  raised  a  very  good  party  of  500 
horse,  most  gentlemen,  for  the  king,  and  had  possessed 
Oxford  ;  but  on  the  approach  of  the  Lord  Say  quitted 
it,  being  now  but  an  open  town,  and  retreated  to 
Worcester,  from  whence,  on  the  approach  of  Essex's 
army,  he  retreated  to  the  king.  And  now  all  things 
grew  ripe  for  action,  both  parties  having  secured  their 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     163 

posts,  and  settled  their  schemes  of  the  war,  taken  their 
posts  and  places  as  their  measures  and  opportunities 
directed.  The  field  was  next  in  their  eye,  and  the  soldiers 
began  to  inquire  when  they  should  fight,  for  as  yet 
there  had  been  little  or  no  blood  drawn  ;  and  'twas  not 
long  before  they  had  enough  of  it ;  for,  I  believe,  I 
may  challenge  all  the  historians  in  Europe  to  tell  me  of 
any  war  in  the  world  where,  in  the  space  of  four  years, 
there  were  so  many  pitched  battles,  sieges,  fights,  and 
skirmishes,  as  in  this  war.  We  never  encamped  or 
entrenched,  never  fortified  the  avenues  to  our  posts,  or 
lay  fenced  with  rivers  and  defiles  ;  here  was  no  leaguers 
in  the  field,  as  at  the  story  of  Nuremberg,  neither  had 
our  soldiers  any  tents,  or  what  they  call  heavy  baggage. 
'Twas  the  general  maxim  of  this  war,  "  Where  is  the 
enemy  ?  let  us  go  and  fight  them,"  or,  on  the  other 
hand,  if  the  enemy  was  coming,  "What  was  to  be  done?" 
"  Why,  what  should  be  done  ?  Draw  out  into  the  fields 
and  fight  them."  I  cannot  say  'twas  the  prudence  of 
the  parties,  and  had  the  king  fought  less  he  had  gained 
more.  And  I  shall  remark  several  times  when  the 
eagerness  of  fighting  was  the  worst  counsel,  and  proved 
our  loss.  This  benefit,  however,  happened  in  general 
to  the  country,  that  it  made  a  quick,  though  a  bloody, 
end  of  the  war,  which  otherwise  had  lasted  till  it  might 
have  ruined  the  whole  nation. 

On  the  loth  of  October  the  king's  army  was  in  full 
march,  his  Majesty  generalissimo,  the  Earl  of  Lindsey, 
general  of  the  foot,  Prince  Rupert,  general  of  the  horse ; 
and  the  first  action  in  the  field  was  by  Prince  Rupert 
and  Sir  John  Byron.  Sir  John  had  brought  his  body  of 
500  horse,  as  I  noted  already,  from  Oxford  to  Wor- 
cester ;  the  Lord  Say,  with  a  strong  party,  being  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Oxford,  and  expected  in  the  town, 
Colonel  Sandys,  a  hot  man,  and  who  had  more  courage 
than  judgment,  advances  with  about  1500  horse  and 


164     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

dragoons,  with  design  to  beat  Sir  John  Byron  out  of 
Worcester,  and  take  post  there  for  the  Parliament. 

The  king  had  notice  that  the  Earl  of  Essex  de- 
signed for  Worcester,  and  Prince  Rupert  was  ordered 
to  advance  with  a  body  of  horse  and  dragoons  to  face 
the  enemy,  and  bring  off  Sir  John  Byron.  This  his 
Majesty  did  to  amuse  the  Earl  of  Essex,  that  he  might 
expect  him  that  way  ;  whereas  the  king's  design  was 
to  get  between  the  Earl  of  Essex's  army  and  the  city  of 
London  ;  and  his  Majesty's  end  was  doubly  answered, 
for  he  not  only  drew  Essex  on  to  Worcester,  where 
he  spent  more  time  than  he  needed,  but  he  beat  the 
party  into  the  bargain. 

I  went  volunteer  in  this  party,  and  rode  in  my 
father's  regiment ;  for  though  we  really  expected  not 
to  see  the  enemy,  yet  I  was  tired  with  lying  still.  We 
came  to  Worcester  just  as  notice  was  brought  to  Sir 
John  Byron,  that  a  party  of  the  enemy  was  on  their 
march  for  Worcester,  upon  which  the  prince  immedi- 
ately consulting  what  was  to  be  done,  resolves  to  march 
the  next  morning  and  fight  them. 

The  enemy,  who  lay  at  Pershore,  about  eight  miles 
from  Worcester,  and,  as  I  believe,  had  no  notice  of  our 
march,  came  on  very  confidently  in  the  morning,  and 
found  us  fairly  drawn  up  to  receive  them.  I  must  con- 
fess this  was  the  bluntest,  downright  way  of  making  war 
that  ever  was  seen.  The  enemy,  who,  in  all  the  little 
knowledge  I  had  of  war,  ought  to  have  discovered  our 
numbers,  and  guessed  by  our  posture  what  our  design 
was,  might  easily  have  informed  themselves  that  we 
intended  to  attack  them,  and  so  might  have  secured  the 
advantage  of  a  bridge  in  their  front ;  but  without  any 
regard  to  these  methods  of  policy,  they  came  on  at  all 
hazards.  Upon  this  notice,  my  father  proposed  to  the 
prince  to  halt  for  them,  and  suffer  ourselves  to  be 
attacked,  since  we  found  them  willing  to  give  us  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     165 

advantage.  The  prince  approved  of  the  advice,  so  we 
halted  within  view  of  a  bridge,  leaving  space  enough  on 
our  front  for  about  half  the  number  of  their  forces  to 
pass  and  draw  up ;  and  at  the  bridge  was  posted  about 
fifty  dragoons,  with  orders  to  retire  as  soon  as  the 
enemy  advanced,  as  if  they  had  been  afraid.  On  the 
right  of  the  road  was  a  ditch,  and  a  very  high  bank 
behind,  where  he  had  placed  300  dragoons,  with  orders 
to  lie  flat  on  their  faces  till  the  enemy  had  passed  the 
bridge,  and  to  let  fly  among  them  as  soon  as  our 
trumpets  sounded  a  charge.  Nobody  but  Colonel 
Sandys  would  have  been  caught  in  such  a  snare,  for  he 
might  easily  have  seen  that  when  he  was  over  the 
bridge  there  was  not  room  enough  for  him  to  fight  in. 
But  the  Lord  of  hosts  was  so  much  in  their  mouths, 
for  that  was  the  word  for  that  day,  that  they  took  little 
heed  how  to  conduct  the  host  of  the  Lord  to  their  own 
advantage. 

As  we  expected,  they  appeared,  beat  our  dragoons 
from  the  bridge,  and  passed  it.  We  stood  firm  in  one 
line  with  a  reserve,  and  expected  a  charge,  but  Colonel 
Sandys,  showing  a  great  deal  more  judgment  than  we 
thought  he  was  master  of,  extends  himself  to  the  left, 
finding  the  ground  too  strait,  and  began  to  form  his 
men  with  a  great  deal  of  readiness  and  skill,  for  by  this 
time  he  saw  our  number  was  greater  than  he  expected. 
The  prince  perceiving  it,  and  foreseeing  that  the  stratagem 
of  the  dragoons  would  be  frustrated  by  this,  immediately 
charges  with  the  horse,  and  the  dragoons  at  the  same 
time  standing  upon  their  feet,  poured  in  their  shot  upon 
those  that  were  passing  the  bridge.  This  surprise  put 
them  into  such  disorder,  that  we  had  but  little  work 
with  them.  For  though  Colonel  Sandys  with  the  troops 
next  him  sustained  the  shock  very  well,  and  behaved 
themselves  gallantly  enough,  yet  the  confusion  beginning 
in  their  rear,  those  that  had  not  yet  passed  the  bridge 


1 66     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

were  kept  back  by  the  fire  of  the  dragoons,  and  the 
rest  were  easily  cut  in  pieces.  Colonel  Sandys  was 
mortally  wounded  and  taken  prisoner,  and  the  crowd 
was  so  great  to  get  back,  that  many  pushed  into  the  water, 
and  were  rather  smothered  than  drowned.  Some  of 
them  who  never  came  into  the  fight,  were  so  frighted, 
that  they  never  looked  behind  them  till  they  came  to 
Pershore,  and,  as  we  were  afterwards  informed,  the  life- 
guards of  the  general  who  had  quartered  in  the  town, 
left  it  in  disorder  enough,  expecting  us  at  the  heels  of 
their  men. 

If  our  business  had  been  to  keep  the  Parliament 
army  from  coming  to  Worcester,  we  had  a  very  good 
opportunity  to  have  secured  the  bridge  at  Pershore ; 
but  our  design  lay  another  way,  as  I  have  said,  and  the 
king  was  for  drawing  Essex  on  to  the  Severn,  in  hopes 
to  get  behind  him,  which  fell  out  accordingly. 

Essex,  spurred  by  this  affront  in  the  infancy  of  their 
affairs,  advances  the  next  day,  and  came  to  Pershore 
time  enough  to  be  at  the  funeral  of  some  of  his  men ; 
and  from  thence  he  advances  to  Worcester. 

We  marched  back  to  Worcester  extremely  pleased 
with  the  good  success  of  our  first  attack,  and  our  men 
were  so  flushed  with  this  little  victory  that  it  put  vigour 
into  the  whole  army.  The  enemy  lost  about  3000 
men,  and  we  carried  away  near  150  prisoners,  with 
500  horses,  some  standards  and  arms,  and  among  the 
prisoners  their  colonel ;  but  he  died  a  little  after  of  his 
wounds. 

Upon  the  approach  of  the  enemy,  Worcester  was 
quitted,  and  the  forces  marched  back  to  join  the  king's 
army,  which  lay  then  at  Bridgnorth,  Ludlow,  and 
thereabout.  As  the  king  expected,  it  fell  out ;  Essex 
found  so  much  work  at  Worcester  to  settle  Parliament 
quarters,  and  secure  Bristol,  Gloucester,  and  Hereford, 
that  it  gave  the  king  a  full  day's  march  of  him.  So 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     167 

the  king,  having  the  start  of  him,  moves  towards 
London  ;  and  Essex,  nettled  to  be  both  beaten  in  fight 
and  outdone  in  conduct,  decamps,  and  follows  the 
king. 

The  Parliament,  and  the  Londoners  too,  were  in  a 
strange  consternation  at  this  mistake  of  their  general ; 
and  had  the  king,  whose  great  misfortune  was  always 
to  follow  precipitant  advices, — had  the  king,  I  say, 
pushed  on  his  first  design,  which  he  had  formed  with 
very  good  reason,  and  for  which  he  had  been  dodging 
with  Essex  eight  or  ten  days,  viz.,  of  marching  directly 
to  London,  where  he  had  a  very  great  interest,  and 
where  his  friends  were  not  yet  oppressed  and  im- 
poverished, as  they  were  afterwards,  he  had  turned  the 
scale  of  his  affairs.  And  every  man  expected  it ;  for 
the  members  began  to  shift  for  themselves,  expresses 
were  sent  on  the  heels  of  one  another  to  the  Earl  of 
Essex  to  hasten  after  the  king,  and,  if  possible,  to  bring 
him  to  a  battle.  Some  of  these  letters  fell  into  our  hands, 
and  we  might  easily  discover  that  the  Parliament  were 
in  the  last  confusion  at  the  thoughts  of  our  coming  to 
London.  Besides  this,  the  city  was  in  a  worse  fright 
than  the  House,  and  the  great  moving  men  began  to 
go  out  of  town.  In  short,  they  expected  us,  and  we 
expected  to  come,  but  Providence  for  our  ruin  had 
otherwise  determined  it. 

Essex,  upon  news  of  the  king's  march,  and  upon 
receipt  of  the  Parliament's  letters,  makes  long  marches 
after  us,  and  on  the  23rd  of  October  reaches  the  village 
of  Kineton,  in  Warwickshire.  The  king  was  almost 
as  far  as  Banbury,  and  there  calls  a  council  of  war. 
Some  of  the  old  officers  that  foresaw  the  advantage  the 
king  had,  the  concern  the  city  was  in,  and  the  vast 
addition,  both  to  the  reputation  of  his  forces  and  the 
increase  of  his  interest,  it  would  be  if  the  king  could 
gain  that  point,  urged  the  king  to  march  on  to  London. 


1 68     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Prince  Rupert  and  the  fresh  colonels  pressed  for 
fighting,  told  the  king  it  dispirited  their  men  to  march 
with  the  enemy  at  their  heels ;  that  the  Parliament 
army  was  inferior  to  him  by  6000  men,  and  fatigued 
with  hasty  marching  ;  that  as  their  orders  were  to  fight, 
he  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  post  himself  to  advantage, 
and  receive  them  to  their  destruction ;  that  the  action 
near  Worcester  had  let  them  know  how  easy  it  was  to 
deal  with  a  rash  enemy  ;  and  that  'twas  a  dishonour  for 
him,  whose  forces  were  so  much  superior,  to  be  pur- 
sued by  his  subjects  in  rebellion.  These  and  the  like 
arguments  prevailed  with  the  king  to  alter  his  wiser 
measures  and  resolve  to  fight.  Nor  was  this  all ;  when 
a  resolution  of  fighting  was  taken,  that  part  of  the  advice 
which  they  who  were  for  fighting  gave,  as  a  reason  for 
their  opinion,  was  forgot,  and  instead  of  halting  and 
posting  ourselves  to  advantage  till  the  enemy  came  up, 
we  were  ordered  to  march  back  and  meet  them. 

Nay,  so  eager  was  the  prince  for  fighting,  that  when, 
from  the  top  of  Edgehill,  the  enemy's  army  was 
descried  in  the  bottom  between  them  and  the  village  of 
Kineton,  and  that  the  enemy  had  bid  us  defiance,  by 
discharging  three  cannons,  we  accepted  the  challenge, 
and  answering  with  two  shots  from  our  army,  we  must 
needs  forsake  the  advantages  of  the  hills,  which  they 
must  have  mounted  under  the  command  of  our  cannon, 
and  march  down  to  them  into  the  plain.  I  confess,  I 
thought  here  was  a  great  deal  more  gallantry  than 
discretion  ;  for  it  was  plainly  taking  an  advantage  out 
of  our  own  hands,  and  putting  it  into  the  hands  of  the 
enemy.  An  enemy  that  must  fight,  may  always  be 
fought  with  to  advantage.  My  old  hero,  the  glorious 
Gustavus  Adolphus,  was  as  forward  to  fight  as  any  man 
of  true  valour  mixed  with  any  policy  need  to  be,  or 
ought  to  be;  but  he  used  to  say,  "An  enemy  reduced 
to  a  necessity  of  fighting,  is  half  beaten." 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     169 

'Tis  true,  we  were  all  but  young  in  the  war ;  the 
soldiers  hot  and  forward,  and  eagerly  desired  to  come 
to  hands  with  the  enemy.  But  I  take  the  more  notice 
of  it  here,  because  the  king  in  this  acted  against  his 
own  measures ;  for  it  was  the  king  himself  had  laid 
the  design  of  getting  the  start  of  Essex,  and  marching 
to  London.  His  friends  had  invited  him  thither,  and 
expected  him,  and  suffered  deeply  for  the  omission ; 
and  yet  he  gave  way  to  these  hasty  counsels,  and 
suffered  his  judgment  to  be  overruled  by  majority  of 
voices  ;  an  error,  I  say,  the  King  of  Sweden  was 
never  guilty  of.  For  if  all  the  officers  at  a  council  of 
war  were  of  a  different  opinion,  yet  unless  their  reasons 
mastered  his  judgment,  their  votes  never  altered  his 
measures.  But  this  was  the  error  of  our  good,  but 
unfortunate  master,  three  times  in  this  war,  and  par- 
ticularly in  two  of  the  greatest  battles  of  the  time,  viz., 
this  of  Edgehill,  and  that  of  Naseby. 

The  resolution  for  fighting  being  published  in  the 
army,  gave  an  universal  joy  to  the  soldiers,  who  ex- 
pressed an  extraordinary  ardour  for  fighting.  I  re- 
member my  father  talking  with  me  about  it,  asked  me 
what  I  thought  of  the  approaching  battle.  I  told  him 
I  thought  the  king  had  done  very  well ;  for  at  that 
time  I  did  not  consult  the  extent  of  the  design,  and 
had  a  mighty  mind,  like  other  rash  people,  to  see  it 
brought  to  a  day,  which  made  me  answer  my  father  as 
I  did.  "  But,"  said  I,  "  sir,  I  doubt  there  will  be 
but  indifferent  doings  on  both  sides,  between  two 
armies  both  made  up  of  fresh  men,  that  have  never 
seen  any  service."  My  father  minded  little  what  I 
spoke  of  that ;  but  when  I  seemed  pleased  that  the 
king  had  resolved  to  fight,  he  looked  angrily  at  me, 
and  told  me  he  was  sorry  I  could  see  no  farther  into 
things.  "  I  tell  you,"  says  he  hastily,  "  if  the  king 
should  kill  and  take  prisoners  this  whole  army,  general 


170     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

and  all,  the  Parliament  will  have  the  victory ;  for  we 
have  lost  more  by  slipping  this  opportunity  of  getting 
into  London,  than  we  shall  ever  get  by  ten  battles." 
I  saw  enough  of  this  afterwards  to  convince  me  of  the 
weight  of  what  my  father  said,  and  so  did  the  king 
too  ;  but  it  was  then  too  late.  Advantages  slipped  in 
war  are  never  recovered. 

We  were  now  in  a  full  march  to  fight  the  Earl  of 
Essex.  It  was  on  Sunday  morning  the  24th  of  October 
1642,  fair  weather  overhead,  but  the  ground  very  heavy 
and  dirty.  As  soon  as  we  came  to  the  top  of  Edgchill, 
we  discovered  their  whole  army.  They  were  not 
drawn  up,  having  had  two  miles  to  march  that  morning, 
but  they  were  very  busy  forming  their  lines,  and  posting 
the  regiments  as  they  came  up.  Some  of  their  horse 
were  exceedingly  fatigued,  having  marched  forty-eight 
hours  together  ;  and  had  they  been  suffered  to  follow  us 
three  or  four  days'  march  farther,  several  of  their  regi- 
ments of  horse  would  have  been  quite  ruined,  and  their 
foot  would  have  been  rendered  unserviceable  for  the 
present.  But  we  had  no  patience. 

As  soon  as  our  whole  army  was  come  to  the  top  of 
the  hill,  we  were  drawn  up  in  order  of  battle.  The 
king's  army  made  a  very  fine  appearance  ;  and  indeed 
they  were  a  body  of  gallant  men  as  ever  appeared  in 
the  field,  and  as  well  furnished  at  all  .points ;  the 
horse  exceeding  well  accoutred,  being  most  of  them 
gentlemen  and  volunteers,  some  whole  regiments 
serving  without  pay ;  their  horses  very  good  and  fit 
for  service  as  could  be  desired.  The  whole  army 
were  not  above  18,000  men,  and  the  enemy  not  1000 
over  or  under,  though  we  had  bee,n  told  they  were  not 
above  12,000;  but  they  had  been  reinforced  with  4000 
men  from  Northampton.  The  king  was  with  the 
general,  the  Earl  of  Lindsey,  in  the  main  battle ; 
Prince  Rupert  commanded  the  right  wing,  and  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     171 

Marquis  of  Hertford,  the  Lord  Willoughby,  and 
several  other  very  good  officers  the  left. 

The  signal  of  battle  being  given  with  two  cannon 
shots,  we  marched  in  order  of  battalia  down  the  hill, 
being  drawn  up  in  two  lines  with  bodies  of  reserve ; 
the  enemy  advanced  to  meet  us  much  in  the  same  form, 
with  this  difference  only,  that  they  had  placed  their 
cannon  on  their  right,  and  the  king  had  placed  ours  in 
the  centre,  before,  or  rather  between  two  great  brigades 
of  foot.  Their  cannon  began  with  us  first,  and  4  did 
some  mischief  among  the  dragoons  of  our  left  wing ; 
but  our  officers,  perceiving  the  shot  took  the  men  and 
missed  the  horses,  ordered  all  to  alight,  and  every  man 
leading  his  horse,  to  advance  in  the  same  order  ;  and 
this  saved  our  men,  for  most  of  the  enemy's  shot  flew 
over  their  heads.  Our  cannon  made  a  terrible  execution 
upon  their  foot  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  and  put  them 
into  great  confusion,  till  the  general  obliged  them  to 
halt,  and  changed  the  posture  of  his  front,  marching 
round  a  small  rising  ground  by  which  he  avoided  the 
fury  of  our  artillery. 

By  this  time  the  wings  were  engaged,  the  king 
having  given  the  signal  of  battle,  and  ordered  the  right 
wing  to  fall  on.  Prince  Rupert,  who,  as  is  said,  com- 
manded that  wing,  fell  on  with  such  fury,  and  pushed 
the  left  wing  of  the  Parliament  army  so  effectually, 
that  in  a  moment  he  filled  all  with  terror  and  confusion. 
Commissary-General  Ramsey,  a  Scotsman,  a  Low 
Country  soldier,  and  an  experienced  officer,  commanded 
their  left  wing,  and  though  he  did  all  that  an  expert 
soldier,  and  a  brave  commander  could  do,  yet  'twas  to 
no  purpose  ;  his  lines  were  immediately  broken,  and  all 
overwhelmed  in  a  trice.  Two  regiments  of  foot,  whether 
as  part  of  the  left  wing,  or  on  the  left  of  the  main 
body,  I  know  not,  were  disordered  by  their  own  horse, 
and  rather  trampled  to  death  by  the  horses,  than  beaten 


172     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

by  our  men ;  but  they  were  so  entirely  broken  and 
disordered,  that  I  do  not  remember  that  ever  they 
made  one  volley  upon  our  men  ;  for  their  own  horse 
running  away,  and  falling  foul  on  these  foot,  were  so 
vigorously  followed  by  our  men,  that  the  foot  never  had 
a  moment  to  rally  or  look  behind  them.  The  point  of 
the  left  wing  of  horse  were  not  so  soon  broken  as  the 
rest,  and  three  regiments  of  them  stood  firm  for  some 
time.  The  dexterous  officers  of  the  other  regiments 
taking  the  opportunity,  rallied  a  great  many  of  their 
scattered  men  behind  them,  and  pieced  in  some  troops 
with  those  regiments ;  but  after  two  or  three  charges, 
which  a  brigade  of  our  second  line,  following  the  prince, 
made  upon  them,  they  also  were  broken  with  the 
rest. 

I  remember  that  at  the  great  battle  of  Leipsic,  the 
right  wing  of  the  Imperialists  having  fallen  in  upon  the 
Saxons  with  like  fury  to  this,  bore  down  all  before 
them,  and  beat  the  Saxons  quite  out  of  the  field  ;  upon 
which  the  soldiers  cried,  "  Victoria,  let  us  follow." 
"  No,  no,"  said  the  old  General  Tilly,  "  let  them  go, 
but  let  us  beat  the  Swedes  too,  and  then  all's  our  own." 
Had  Prince  Rupert  taken  this  method,  and  instead  of 
following  the  fugitives,  who  were  dispersed  so  effectu- 
ally that  two  regiments  would  have  secured  them  from 
rallying, — I  say,  had  he  fallen  in  upon  the  foot,  or 
wheeled  to  the  left,  and  fallen  in  upon  the  rear  of  the 
enemy's  right  wing  of  horse,  or  returned  to  the  assist- 
ance of  the  left  wing  of  our  horse,  we  had  gained  the 
most  absolute  and  complete  victory  that  could  be ;  nor 
had  tooo  men  of  the  enemy's  army  got  off.  But  this 
prince,  who  was  full  of  fire,  and  pleased  to  see  the 
rout  of  the  enemy,  pursued  them  quite  to  the  town  of 
Kineton,  where  indeed  he  killed  abundance  of  their  men, 
and  some  time  also  was  lost  in  plundering  the  baggage. 

But  in  the  meantime,  the  glory  and  advantage  of  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     173 

day  was  lost  to  the  king,  for  the  right  wing  of  the 
Parliament  horse  could  not  be  so  broken.  Sir  William 
Balfour  made  a  desperate  charge  upon  the  point  of  the 
king's  left,  and  had  it  not  been  for  two  regiments  of 
dragoons  who  were  planted  in  the  reserve,  had  routed 
the  whole  wing,  for  he  broke  through  the  first  line, 
and  staggered  the  second,  who  advanced  to  their  assist- 
ance, but  was  so  warmly  received  by  those  dragoons, 
who  came  seasonably  in,  and  gave  their  first  fire  on 
horseback,  that  his  fury  was  checked,  and  having  lost 
a  great  many  men,  was  forced  to  wheel  about  to  his 
own  men ;  and  had  the  king  had  but  three  regiments 
of  horse  at  hand  to  have  charged  him,  he  had  been 
routed.  The  rest  of  this  wing  kept  their  ground,  and 
received  the  first  fury  of  the  enemy  with  great  firmness; 
after  which,  advancing  in  their  turn,  they  were  once 
masters  of  the  Earl  of  Essex's  cannon.  And  here  we 
lost  another  advantage ;  for  if  any  foot  had  been  at 
hand  to  support  these  horse,  they  had  carried  off  the 
cannon,  or  turned  it  upon  the  main  battle  of  the  enemy's 
foot,  but  the  foot  were  otherwise  engaged.  The  horse 
on  this  side  fought  with  great  obstinacy  and  variety  of 
success  a  great  while.  Sir  Philip  Stapleton,  who  com- 
manded the  guards  of  the  Earl  of  Essex,  being 
engaged  with  a  party  of  our  Shrewsbury  cavaliers,  as 
we  called  them,  was  once  in  a  fair  way  to  have  been 
cut  off  by  a  brigade  of  our  foot,  who,  being  advanced 
to  fall  on  upon  the  Parliament's  main  body,  flanked  Sir 
Philip's  horse  in  their  way,  and  facing  to  the  left,  so 
furiously  charged  him  with  their  pikes,  that  he  was 
obliged  to  retire  in  great  disorder,  and  with  the  loss  of 
a  great  many  men  and  horses. 

All  this  while  the  foot  on  both  sides  were  desperately 
engaged,  and  coming  close  up  to  the  teeth  of  one 
another  with  the  clubbed  musket  and  push  of  pike, 
fought  with  great  resolution,  and  a  terrible  slaughter  on 


174     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

both  sides,  giving  no  quarter  for  a  great  while ;  and 
they  continued  to  do  thus,  till,  as  if  they  were  tired, 
and  out  of  wind,  either  party  seemed  willing  enough 
to  leave  off,  and  take  breath.  Those  which  suffered 
most  were  that  brigade  which  had  charged  Sir  William 
Stapleton's  horse,  who  being  bravely  engaged  in  the 
front  with  the  enemy's  foot,  were,  on  the  sudden, 
charged  again  in  front  and  flank  by  Sir  William 
Balfour's  horse  and  disordered,  after  a  very  desperate 
defence.  Here  the  king's  standard  was  taken,  the 
standard-bearer,  Sir  Edward  Verney,  being  killed ; 
but  it  was  rescued  again  by  Captain  Smith,  and  brought 
to  the  king  the  same  night,  for  which  the  king  knighted 
the  captain. 

This  brigade  of  foot  had  fought  all  the  day,  and 
had  not  been  broken  at  last,  if  any  horse  had  been  at 
hand  to  support  them.  The  field  began  to  be  now 
clear ;  both  armies  stood,  as  it  were,  gazing  at  one 
another,  only  the  king,  having  rallied  his  foot,  seemed 
inclined  to  renew  the  charge,  and  began  to  cannonade 
them,  which  they  could  not  return,  most  of  their 
cannon  being  nailed  while  they  were  in  our  possession, 
and  all  the  cannoniers  killed  or  fled  ;  and  our  gunners 
did  execution  upon  Sir  William  Balfour's  troops  for  a 
good  while. 

My  father's  regiment  being  in  the  right  with  the 
prince,  I  saw  little  of  the  fight  but  the  rout  of  the 
enemy's  left,  and  we  had  as  full  a  victory  there  as  we 
could  desire,  but  spent  too  much  time  in  it.  We  killed 
about  2000  men  in  that  part  of  the  action,  and  having 
totally  dispersed  them,  and  plundered  their  baggage, 
began  to  think  of  our  fellows  when  'twas  too  late  to 
help  them.  We  returned,  however,  victorious  to  the 
king,  just  as  the  battle  was  over.  The  king  asked  the 
prince  what  news  ?  He  told  him  he  could  give  his 
Majesty  a  good  account  of  the  enemy's  horse.  *'  Ay,  by 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     175 

G — d,"  says  a  gentleman  that  stood  by  me,  "and  of 
their  carts  too."  That  word  was  spoken  with  such  a 
sense  of  the  misfortune,  and  made  such  an  impression  in 
the  whole  army,  that  it  occasioned  some  ill  blood  after- 
wards among  us ;  and  but  that  the  king  took  up  the 
business,  it  had  been  of  ill  consequence,  for  some 
person  who  had  heard  the  gentleman  speak  it,  informed 
the  prince  who  it  was,  and  the  prince  resenting  it, 
spoke  something  about  it  in  the  hearing  of  the  party 
when  the  king  was  present.  The  gentleman,  not  at  all 
surprised,  told  his  Highness  openly  he  had  said  the 
words  ;  and  though  he  owned  he  had  no  disrespect  for 
his  Highness,  yet  he  could  not  but  say,  if  it  had  not 
been  so,  the  enemy's  army  had  been  better  beaten. 
The  prince  replied  something  very  disobliging ;  upon 
which  the  gentleman  came  up  to  the  king,  and  kneeling, 
humbly  besought  his  Majesty  to  accept  of  his  commis- 
sion, and  to  give  him  leave  to  tell  the  prince,  that 
whenever  his  Highness  pleased,  he  was  ready  to  give 
him  satisfaction.  The  prince  was  exceedingly  pro- 
voked, and  as  he  was  very  passionate,  began  to  talk 
very  oddly,  and  without  all  government  of  himself. 
The  gentleman,  as  bold  as  he,  but  much  calmer,  pre- 
served his  temper,  but  maintained  his  quarrel ;  and  the 
king  was  so  concerned,  that  he  was  very  much  out 
of  humour  with  the  prince  about  it.  However,  his 
Majrsty,  upon  consideration,  soon  ended  the  dispute,  by 
laying  his  commands  on  them  both  to  speak  no  more 
of  it  for  that  day ;  and  refusing  the  commission  from 
the  colonel,  for  he  was  no  less,  sent  for  them  both  next 
morning  in  private,  and  made  them  friends  again. 

But  to  return  to  our  story.  We  came  back  to  the 
king  timely  enough  to  put  the  Earl  of  Essex's  men 
out  of  all  humour  of  renewing  the  fight,  and  as  I 
observed  before,  both  parties  stood  gazing  at  one 
another,  and  our  cannon  playing  upon  them  obliged  Sir 


176     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

William  Balfour's  horse  to  wheel  off  in  some  disorder, 
hut  they  returned  us  none  again,  which,  as  we  afterwards 
understood,  was,  as  I  said  before,  for  want  of  both 
powder  and  gunners,  for  the  cannoniers  and  firemen 
were  killed,  or  had  quitted  their  train  in  the  fight, 
when  our  horse  had  possession  of  their  artillery ;  and 
as  they  had  spiked  up  some  of  the  cannon,  so  they  had 
carried  away  fifteen  carriages  of  powder. 

Night  coming  on,  ended  all  discourse  of  more  fight- 
ing, and  the  king  drew  off  and  marched  towards  the  hills. 
I  know  no  other  token  of  victory  which  the  enemy  had 
than  their  lying  in  the  field  of  battle  all  night,  which 
they  did  for  no  other  reason  than  that,  having  lost  their 
baggage  and  provisions,  they  had  nowhere  to  go,  and 
which  we  did  not,  because  we  had  good  quarters  at 
hand. 

The  number  of  prisoners  and  of  the  slain  were  not 
very  unequal ;  the  enemy  lost  more  men,  we  most  of 
quality.  Six  thousand  men  on  both  sides  were  killed 
on  the  spot,  whereof,  when  our  rolls  were  examined,  we 
missed  2500.  We  lost  our  brave  general  the  old  Earl 
of  Lindsey,  who  was  wounded  and  taken  prisoner,  and 
died  of  his  wounds ;  Sir  Edward  Stradling,  Colonel 
Lundsford,  prisoners ;  and  Sir  Edward  Verney  and  a 
great  many  gentlemen  of  quality  slain.  On  the  other 
hand,  we  carried  off  Colonel  Essex,  Colonel  Ramsey, 
and  the  Lord  St  John,  who  also  died  of  his  wounds ; 
we  took  five  ammunition  waggons  full  of  powder,  and 
brought  off  about  500  horse  in  the  defeat  of  the  left 
wing,  with  eighteen  standards  and  colours,  and  lost 
seventeen. 

The  slaughter  of  the  left  wing  was  so  great,  and  the 
flight  so  effectual,  that  several  of  the  officers  rid  clear 
away,  coasting  round,  and  got  to  London,  where  they 
reported  that  the  Parliament  army  was  entirely  defeated 
— all  lost,  killed,  or  taken,  as  if  none  but  them  were  left 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     177 

alive  to  carry  the  news.  This  filled  them  with  con- 
sternation for  a  while,  but  when  other  messengers 
followed,  all  was  restored  to  quiet  again,  and  the 
Parliament  cried  up  their  victory  and  sufficiently  mocked 
God  and  their  general  with  their  public  thanks  for  it. 
Truly,  as  the  fight  was  a  deliverance  to  them,  they 
were  in  the  right  to  give  thanks  for  it ;  but  as  to  its 
being  a  victory,  neither  side  had  much  to  boast  of,  and 
they  less  a  great  deal  than  we  had. 

I  got  no  hurt  in  this  fight,  and  indeed  we  of  the 
right  wing  had  but  little  fighting ;  I  think  I  had  dis- 
charged my  pistols  but  once,  and  my  carabine  twice, 
for  we  had  more  fatigue  than  fight;  the  enemy  fled, 
and  we  had  little  to  do  but  to  follow  and  kill  those  we 
could  overtake.  1  spoiled  a  good  horse,  and  got  a 
better  from  the  enemy  in  his  room,  and  came  home 
weary  enough.  My  father  lost  his  horse,  and  in  the 
fall  was  bruised  in  his  thigh  by  another  horse  treading 
on  him,  which  disabled  him  for  some  time,  and  at  his 
request,  by  his  Majesty's  consent,  I  commanded  the 
regiment  in  his  absence. 

The  enemy  received  a  recruit  of  4000  men  the  next 
morning ;  if  they  had  not,  I  believe  they  had  gone  back 
towards  Worcester ;  but,  encouraged  by  that  reinforce- 
ment, they  called  a  council  of  war,  and  had  a  long 
debate  whether  they  could  attack  us  again ;  but  not- 
withstanding their  great  victory,  they  durst  not  attempt 
it,  though  this  addition  of  strength  made  them  superior 
to  us  by  3000  men. 

The  king  indeed  expected,  that  when  these  troops 
joined  them  they  would  advance,  and  we  were  preparing 
to  receive  them  at  a  village  called  Aynho,  where  the  head- 
quarters continued  three  or  four  days;  and  had  they 
really  esteemed  the  first  day's  work  a  victory,  as  they 
called  it,  they  would  have  done  it,  but  they  thought  not 
good  to  venture,  but  march  away  to  Warwick,  and  from 

M 


178     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

thence  to  Coventry.  The  king,  to  urge  them  to  venture 
upon  him,  and  come  to  a  second  battle,  sits  down  be- 
fore Banbury,  and  takes  both  town  and  castle ;  and  two 
entire  regiments  of  foot,  and  one  troop  of  horse,  quit 
the  Parliament  service,  and  take  up  their  arms  for  the 
king.  This  was  done  almost  before  their  faces,  which 
was  a  better  proof  of  a  victory  on  our  side,  than  any 
they  could  pretend  to.  From  Banbury  we  marched  to 
Oxford ;  and  now  all  men  saw  the  Parliament  had  made 
a  great  mistake,  for  they  were  not  always  in  the  right 
any  more  than  we,  to  leave  Oxford  without  a  garrison. 
The  king  caused  new  regular  works  to  be  drawn  round 
it,  and  seven  royal  bastions  with  ravelins  and  out-works, 
a  double  ditch,  counterscarp,  and  covered  way ;  all 
which,  added  to  the  advantage  of  the  situation,  made  it 
a  formidable  plnce,  and  from  this  time  it  became  our 
place  of  arms,  and  the  centre  of  affairs  on  the  king's 
side. 

If  the  Parliament  had  the  honour  of  the  field,  the 
king  reaped  the  fruits  of  the  victory;  for  all  this  part 
of  the  country  submitted  to  him.  Essex's  army  made 
the  best  of  their  way  to  London,  and  were  but  in  an 
ill  condition  when  they  came  there,  especially  their 
horse. 

The  Parliament,  sensible  of  this,  and  receiving  daily 
accounts  of  the  progress  we  made,  began  to  cool  a  little 
in  their  temper,  abated  of  their  first  rage,  and  voted  an 
address  for  peace;  and  sent  to  the  king  to  let  him  know 
they  were  desirous  to  prevent  the  effusion  of  more 
blood,  and  to  bring  things  to  an  accommodation,  or,  as 
they  called  it,  a  right  understanding. 

I  was  now,  by  the  king's  particular  favour,  summoned 
to  the  councils  of  war,  my  rather  continuing  absent  and 
ill ;  and  now  I  began  to  think  of  the  real  grounds,  and 
which  was  more,  of  the  fatal  issue  of  this  war.  I  say, 
I  now  began  it;  for  I  cannot  say  that  I  ever  rightly 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     179 

stated  matters  in  my  own  mind  before,  though  I  had 
been  enough  used  to  blood,  and  to  see  the  destruction 
of  people,  sacking  of  towns,  and  plundering  the  country; 
yet  '  twas  in  Germany,  and  among  strangers ;  but  I 
found  a  strange  secret  and  unaccountable  sadness  upon 
my  spirits,  to  see  this  acting  in  my  own  native  country. 
It  grieved  me  to  the  heart,  even  in  the  rout  of  our 
enemies,  to  see  the  slaughter  of  them  ;  and  even  in 
the  fight,  to  hear  a  man  cry  for  quarter  in  English, 
moved  me  to  a  compassion  which  I  had  never  been 
used  to ;  nay,  sometimes  it  looked  to  me  as  if  some 
of  my  own  men  had  been  beaten ;  and  when  I  heard 
a  soldier  cry,  "  O  God,  I  am  shot,"  I  looked  behind 
me  to  see  which  of  my  own  troop  was  fallen.  Here 
I  saw  myself  at  the  cutting  of  the  throats  of  my  friends; 
and  indeed  some  of  my  near  relations.  My  old  com- 
rades and  fellow-soldiers  in  Germany  were  some  with 
us,  some  against  us,  as  their  opinions  happened  to  differ 
in  religion.  For  my  part,  I  confess  I  had  not  much 
religion  in  me,  at  that  time ;  but  I  thought  religion 
rightly  practised  on  both  sides  would  have  made  us 
all  better  friends ;  and  therefore  sometimes  I  began 
to  think,  that  both  the  bishops  of  our  side,  and  the 
preachers  on  theirs,  made  religion  rather  the  pretence 
than  the  cause  of  the  war.  And  from  those  thoughts 
I  vigorously  argued  it  at  the  council  of  war  against 
marching  to  Brentford,  while  the  address  for  a  treaty 
of  peace  from  the  Parliament  was  in  hand  ;  for  I  was 
for  taking  the  Parliament  by  the  handle  which  they 
had  given  us,  and  entering  into  a  negotiation,  with  the 
advantage  of  its  being  at  their  own  request. 

I  thought  the  king  had  now  in  his  hands  an  oppor- 
tunity to  make  an  honourable  peace ;  for  this  battle 
of  Edgehill,  as  much  as  they  boasted  of  the  victory 
to  hearten  up  their  friends,  had  sorely  weakened  their 
army,  and  discouraged  their  party  too,  which  in  effect 


i8o     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

was  worse  as  to  their  army.  The  horse  were  par- 
ticularly in  an  ill  case,  and  the  foot  greatly  diminished, 
and  the  remainder  very  sickly ;  but  besides  this,  the 
Parliament  were  greatly  alarmed  at  the  progress  we 
made  afterward  ;  and  still  fearing  the  king's  surprising 
them,  had  sent  for  the  Earl  of  Essex  to  London,  to 
defend  them  ;  by  which  the  country  was,  as  it  were, 
defeated  and  abandoned,  and  left  to  be  plundered; 
our  parties  over-run  all  places  at  pleasure.  All  this 
while  I  considered,  that  whatever  the  soldiers  of  fortune 
meant  by  the  war,  our  desires  were  to  suppress  the 
exorbitant  power  of  a  party,  to  establish  our  king  in 
his  just  and  legal  rights ;  but  not  with  a  design  to 
destroy  the  constitution  of  government  and  the  being 
of  Parliament.  And  therefore  I  thought  now  was  the 
time  for  peace,  and  there  were  a  great  many  worthy 
gentlemen  in  the  army  of  my  mind ;  and,  had  our 
master  had  ears  to  hear  us,  the  war  might  have  had 
an  end  here. 

This  address  for  peace  was  received  by  the  king 
at  Maidenhead,  whither  his  army  was  now  advanced, 
and  his  Majesty  returned  answer  by  Sir  Peter  Kille- 
grew,  that  he  desired  nothing  more,  and  would  not  be 
wanting  on  his  part.  Upon  this  the  Parliament  name 
commissioners,  and  his  Majesty  excepting  against  Sir 
John  Evelyn,  they  left  him  out,  and  sent  others ;  and 
desired  the  king  to  appoint  his  residence  near  London, 
where  the  commissioners  might  wait  upon  him.  Ac- 
cordingly the  king  appointed  Windsor  for  the  place 
of  treaty,  and  desired  the  treaty  might  be  hastened. 
And  thus  all  things  looked  with  a  favourable  aspect, 
when  one  unlucky  action  knocked  it  all  on  the  head, 
and  filled  both  parties  with  more  implacable  ani- 
mosities than  they  had  before,  and  all  hopes  of  peace 
vanished. 

During  this  progress  of  the  king's  armies,  we  were 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     181 

always  abroad  with  the  horse  ravaging  the  country, 
and  plundering  the  Roundheads.  Prince  Rupert,  a 
most  active  vigilant  party  man,  and  I  must  own,  fitter 
for  such  than  for  a  general,  was  never  lying  still,  and 
I  seldom  stayed  behind  ;  for  our  regiment  being  very 
well  mounted,  he  would  always  send  for  us,  if  he  had 
any  extraordinary  design  in  hand. 

One  time  in  particular  he  had  a  design  upon 
Aylesbury,  the  capital  of  Buckinghamshire ;  indeed  our 
view  at  first  was  rather  to  beat  the  enemy  out  of  town 
and  demolish  their  works,  and  perhaps  raise  some 
contributions  on  the  rich  country  round  it,  than  to 
garrison  the  place,  and  keep  it ;  for  we  wanted  no 
more  garrisons,  being  masters  of  the  field. 

The  prince  had  2500  horse  with  him  in  this 
expedition,  but  no  foot ;  the  town  had  some  foot 
raised  in  the  country  by  Mr  Hampden,  and  two 
regiments  of  country  militia,  whom  we  made  light  of, 
but  we  found  they  stood  to  their  tackle  better  than 
well  enough.  We  came  very  early  to  the  town,  and 
thought  they  had  no  notice  of  us  ;  but  some  false 
brother  had  given  them  the  alarm,  and  we  found  them 
all  in  arms,  the  hedges  without  the  town  lined  with 
musketeers,  on  that  side  in  particular  where  they 
expected  us,  and  two  regiments  of  foot  drawn  up 
in  view  to  support  them,  with  some  horse  in  the  rear 
of  all. 

The  prince,  willing,  however,  to  do  something, 
caused  some  of  his  horse  to  alight,  and  serve  as 
dragoons ;  and  having  broken  a  way  into  the  enclo- 
sures, the  horse  beat  the  foot  from  behind  the  hedges, 
while  the  rest  who  were  alighted  charged  them  in  the 
lane  which  leads  to  the  town.  Here  they  had  cast 
up  some  works,  and  fired  from  their  lines  very  regu- 
larly, considering  them  as  militia  only,  the  governor 
encouraging  them  by  his  example  ;  so  that  finding 


1 82     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

without  some  foot  there  would  be  no  good  to  be  done, 
we  gave  it  over,  and  drew  off;  and  so  Aylesbury 
escaped  a  scouring  for  that  time. 

I  cannot  deny  but  these  flying  parties  of  horse 
committed  great  spoil  among  the  country  people ;  and 
sometimes  the  prince  gave  a  liberty  to  some  cruelties 
which  were  not  at  all  for  the  king's  interest ;  because 
it  being  still  upon  our  own  country,  and  the  king's  own 
subjects,  whom  in  all  his  declarations  he  protested 
to  be  careful  of,  it  seemed  to  contradict  all  those 
protestations  and  declarations,  and  served  to  aggravate 
and  exasperate  the  common  people ;  and  the  king's 
enemies  made  all  the  advantages  of  it  that  was  possible, 
by  crying  out  of  twice  as  many  extravagancies  as  were 
committed. 

'Tis  true,  the  king,  who  naturally  abhorred  such 
things,  could  not  restrain  his  men,  no,  nor  his  generals, 
so  absolutely  as  he  would  have  done.  The  war,  on 
his  side,  was  very  much  a  la  volunteer ;  many  gentle- 
men served  him  at  their  own  charge,  and  some  paid 
whole  regiments  themselves :  sometimes  also  the  king's 
affairs  were  straiter  than  ordinary,  and  his  men  were 
not  very  well  paid,  and  this  obliged  him  to  wink  at 
their  excursions  upon  the  country,  though  he  did  not 
approve  of  them.  And  yet  I  must  own,  that  in  those 
parts  of  England  where  the  war  was  hottest,  there 
never  was  seen  that  ruin  and  depopulation,  murders, 
ravishments,  and  barbarities,  which  I  have  seen  even 
among  Protestant  armies  abroad,  in  Germany  and 
other  foreign  parts  of  the  world.  And  if  the  Parlia- 
ment people  had  seen  those  things  abroad,  as  I  had, 
they  would  not  have  complained. 

The  most  I  have  seen  was  plundering  the  towns  for 
provisions,  drinking  up  their  beer,  and  turning  our 
horses  into  their  fields,  or  stacks  of  corn ;  and  some- 
times the  soldiers  would  be  a  little  rude  with  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     183 

wenches ;  but  alas !  what  was  this  to  Count  Tilly's 
ravages  in  Saxony  ?  Or  what  was  our  taking  of 
Leicester  by  storm,  where  they  cried  out  of  our 
barbarities,  to  the  sacking  of  New  Brandenburg,  or 
the  taking  of  Magdeburg  ?  In  Leicester,  of  7000  or 
8000  people  in  the  town,  300  were  killed ;  in  Magde- 
burg, of  25,000  scarce  2700  were  left,  and  the  whole 
town  burnt  to  ashes.  I  myself  have  seen  seventeen  or 
eighteen  villages  on  fire  in  a  day,  and  the  people 
driven  away  from  their  dwellings,  like  herds  of  cattle ; 
the  men  murdered,  the  women  stripped ;  and  700  or 
800  of  them  together,  after  they  had  suffered  all  the 
indignities  and  abuses  of  the  soldiers,  driven  stark 
naked  in  the  winter  through  the  great  towns,  to  seek 
shelter  and  relief  from  the  charity  of  their  enemies.  I 
do  not  instance  these  greater  barbarities  to  justify 
lesser  actions,  which  are  nevertheless  irregular ;  but  I 
do  say,  that  circumstances  considered,  this  war  was 
managed  with  as  much  humanity  on  both  sides  as 
could  be  expected,  especially  also  considering  the 
animosity  of  parties. 

But  to  return  to  the  prince:  he  had  not  always  the 
same  success  in  these  enterprises,  for  sometimes  we 
came  short  home.  And  I  cannot  omit  one  pleasant 
adventure  which  happened  to  a  party  of  ours,  in  one  of 
these  excursions  into  Buckinghamshire.  The  major 
of  our  regiment  was  soundly  beaten  by  a  party,  which, 
as  I  may  say,  was  led  by  a  woman ;  and,  if  1  had 
not  rescued  him,  I  know  not  but  he  had  been  taken 
prisoner  by  a  woman.  It  seems  our  men  had  be- 
sieged some  fortified  house  about  Oxfordshire,  towards 
Thame,  and  the  house  being  defended  by  the  lady  in 
her  husband's  absence,  she  had  yielded  the  house  upon 
a  capitulation  ;  one  of  the  articles  of  which  was,  to 
march  out  with  all  her  servants,  soldiers,  and  goods, 
and  to  be  conveyed  to  Thame.  Whether  she  thought 


184     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

to  have  gone  no  farther,  or  that  she  reckoned  herself 
safe  there,  I  know  not ;  but  my  major,  with  two 
troops  of  horse,  meets  with  this  lady  and  her  party, 
about  five  miles  from  Thame,  as  we  were  coming  back 
from  our  defeated  attack  of  Aylesbury.  We  reckoned 
ourselves  in  an  enemy's  country,  and  had  lived  a  little 
at  large,  or  at  discretion,  as  'tis  called  abroad;  and 
these  two  troops,  with  the  major,  were  returning  to  our 
detachment  from  a  little  village,  where,  at  the  farmer's 
house,  they  had  met  with  some  liquor,  and  truly  some 
of  his  men  were  so  drunk  they  could  but  just  sit  upon 
their  horses.  The  major  himself  was  not  much  better, 
and  the  whole  body  were  but  in  a  sorry  condition  to 
fight.  Upon  the  road  they  meet  this  party ;  the  lady 
having  no  design  of  fighting,  and  being,  as  she  thought, 
under  the  protection  of  the  articles,  sounds  a  parley, 
and  desired  to  speak  with  the  officer.  The  major, 
as  drunk  as  he  was,  could  tell  her,  that  by  the  articles 
she  was  to  be  assured  no  farther  than  Thame,  and 
being  now  five  miles  beyond  it,  she  was  a  fair  enemy, 
and  therefore  demanded  to  render  themselves  prisoners. 
The  lady  seemed  surprised,  but  being  sensible  she  was 
in  the  wrong,  offered  to  compound  for  her  goods,  and 
would  have  given  him  g£$oo,  and  I  think  seven  or 
eight  horses.  The  major  would  certainly  have  taken 
it,  if  he  had  not  been  drunk ;  but  he  refused  it,  and 
gave  threatening  words  to  her,  blustering  in  language 
which  he  thought  proper  to  fright  a  woman,  viz.,  that 
he  would  cut  them  all  to  pieces,  and  give  no  quarter, 
and  the  like. 

The  lady,  who  had  been  more  used  to  the  smell  of 
powder  than  he  imagined,  called  some  of  her  servants 
to  her,  and,  consulting  with  them  what  to  do,  they  all 
unanimously  encouraged  her  to  let  them  fight ;  told 
her  it  was  plain  that  the  commander  was  drunk,  and 
all  that  were  with  him  were  rather  worse  than  he,  and 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     185 

hardly  able  to  sit  their  horses,  and  that  therefore  one  bold 
charge  would  put  them  all  into  confusion.  In  a  word, 
she  consented,  and,  as  she  was  a  woman,  they  desired 
her  to  secure  herself  among  the  waggons  ;  but  she  re- 
fused, and  told  them  bravely  she  would  take  her  fate 
with  them.  In  short,  she  boldly  bade  my  major  de- 
fiance, and  that  he  might  do  his  worst,  since  she  had 
offered  him  fair,  and  he  had  refused  it ;  her  mind  was 
altered  now,  and  she  would  give  him  nothing,  and  bade 
his  officer  that  parleyed  longer  with  her  be  gone  ;  so  the 
parley  ended.  After  this  she  gave  him  fair  leave  to  go 
back  to  his  men ;  but  before  he  could  tell  his  tale  to 
them  she  was  at  his  heels  with  all  her  men,  and  gave 
him  such  a  home  charge  as  put  his  men  into  disorder, 
and,  being  too  drunk  to  rally,  they  were  knocked  down 
before  they  knew  what  to  do  with  themselves,  and  in  a 
few  minutes  more  they  took  to  a  plain  flight.  But 
what  was  still  worse,  the  men,  being  some  of  them 
very  drunk,  when  they  came  to  run  for  their  lives  fell 
over  one  another,  and  tumbled  over  their  horses,  and 
made  such  work  that  a  troop  of  women  might  have 
beaten  them  all.  In  this  pickle,  with  the  enemy  at  his 
heels,  I  came  in  with  him,  hearing  the  noise.  When* 
I  appeared  the  pursuers  retreated,  and,  seeing  what  a 
condition  my  people  were  in,  and  not  knowing  the  strength 
of  the  enemy,  I  contented  myself  with  bringing  them 
off  without  pursuing  the  other ;  nor  could  I  ever  hear 
positively  who  this  female  captain  was.  We  lost  seven- 
teen or  eighteen  of  our  men,  and  about  thirty  horses ; 
but  when  the  particulars  of  the  story  was  told  us,  our 
major  was  so  laughed  at  by  the  whole  army,  and  laughed 
at  everywhere,  that  he  was  ashamed  to  show  himself 
for  a  week  or  a  fortnight  after. 

But  to  return  to  the  king :  his  Majesty,  as  I  observed, 
was  at  Maidenhead  addressed  by  the  Parliament  for 
peace,  and  Windsor  being  appointed  for  the  place  of 


1 86     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

treaty,  the  van  of  his  army  lay  at  Colebrook.  In  the 
meantime,  whether  it  were  true  or  only  a  pretence,  but 
it  was  reported  the  Parliament  general  had  sent  a  body 
of  his  troops,  with  a  train  of  artillery,  to  Hammer- 
smith, in  order  to  fall  upon  some  part  of  our  army,  or 
to  take  some  advanced  post,  which  was  to  the  prejudice 
of  our  men  ;  whereupon  the  king  ordered  the  army  to 
march,  and,  by  the  favour  of  a  thick  mist,  came  within 
half  a  mile  of  Brentford  before  he  was  discovered. 
There  were  two  regiments  of  foot,  and  about  600  horse 
into  the  town,  of  the  enemy's  best  troops  ;  these  taking 
the  alarm,  posted  themselves  on  the  bridge  at  the  west 
end  of  the  town.  The  king  attacked  them  with  a 
select  detachment  of  his  best  infantry,  and  they  defended 
themselves  with  incredible  obstinacy.  I  must  own  I 
never  saw  raw  men,  for  they  could  not  have  been  in 
arms  above  four  months,  act  like  them  in  my  life.  In 
short,  there  was  no  forcing  these  men,  for,  though  two 
whole  brigades  of  our  foot,  backed  by  our  horse,  made 
five  several  attacks  upon  them  they  could  not  break 
them,  and  we  lost  a  great  many  brave  men  in  that 
action.  At  last,  seeing  the  obstinacy  of  these  men,  a 
party  of  horse  was  ordered  to  go  round  from  Osterley ; 
and,  entering  the  town  on  the  north  side,  where,  though 
the  horse  made  some  resistance,  it  was  not  considerable, 
the  town  was  presently  taken.  I  led  my  regiment 
through  an  enclosure,  and  came  into  the  town  nearer 
to  the  bridge  than  the  rest,  by  which  means  I  got  first 
into  the  town  ;  but  I  had  this  loss  by  my  expedition, 
that  the  foot  charged  me  before  the  body  was  come  up, 
and  poured  in  their  shot  very  furiously.  My  men  were 
but  in  an  ill  case,  and  would  not  have  stood  much 
longer,  if  the  rest  of  the  horse  coming  up  the  lane  had 
not  found  them  other  employment.  When  the  horse 
were  thus  entered,  they  immediately  dispersed  the 
enemy's  horse,  who  fled  away  towards  London,  and 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     187 

falling  in  sword  in  hand  upon  the  rear  of  the  foot,  who 
were  engaged  at  the  bridge,  they  were  all  cut  in  pieces, 
except  about  200,  who,  scorning  to  ask  quarter,  des- 
perately threw  themselves  into  the  river  of  Thames, 
where  they  were  most  of  them  drowned. 

The  Parliament  and  their  party  made  a  great  outcry 
at  this  attempt — that  it  was  base  and  treacherous  while 
in  a  treaty  of  peace  ;  and  that  the  king,  having  amused 
them  with  hearkening  to  a  treaty,  designed  to  have 
seized  upon  their  train  of  artillery  first,  and,  after  that, 
to  have  surprised  both  the  city  of  London  and  the 
Parliament.  And  I  have  observed  since,  that  our 
historians  note  this  action  as  contrary  to  the  laws  of 
honour  and  treaties,  though  as  there  was  no  cessation 
of  arms  agreed  on,  nothing  is  more  contrary  to  the  laws 
of  war  than  to  suggest  it. 

That  it  was  a  very  unhappy  thing  to  the  king  and 
whole  nation,  as  it  broke  off  the  hopes  of  peace,  and 
was  the  occasion  of  bringing  the  Scots  army  in  upon  us, 
I  readily  acknowledge,  but  that  there  was  anything  dis- 
honourable in  it,  I  cannot  allow.  For  though  the  Parlia- 
ment had  addressed  to  the  king  for  peace,  and  such  steps 
were  taken  in  it  as  before,  yet,  as  I  have  said,  there  was 
no  proposals  made  on  either  side  for  a  cessation  of  arms, 
and  all  the  world  must  allow,  that  in  such  cases  the  war 
goes  on  in  the  field,  while  the  peace  goes  on  in  the 
cabinet.  And  if  the  war  goes  on,  admit  the  king  had 
designed  to  surprise  the  city  or  Parliament,  or  all  of 
them,  it  had  been  no  more  than  the  custom  of  war 
allows,  and  what  they  would  have  done  by  him  if  they 
could.  The  treaty  of  Westphalia,  or  peace  of  Munster, 
which  ended  the  bloody  wars  of  Germany,  was  a  pre- 
cedent for  this.  That  treaty  was  actually  negotiating 
seven  years,  and  yet  the  war  went  on  with  all  the  vigour 
and  rancour  imaginable,  even  to  the  last.  Nay,  the 
very  time  after  the  conclusion  of  it,  but  before  the  news 


1 88     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

could  be  brought  to  the  army,  did  he  that  was  after- 
wards King  of  Sweden,  Carolus  Gustavus,  take  the 
city  of  Prague  by  surprise,  and  therein  an  inestimable 
booty.  Besides,  all  the  wars  of  Europe  are  full  of 
examples  of  this  kind,  and  therefore  I  cannot  see  any 
reason  to  blame  the  king  for  this  action  as  to  the  fair- 
ness of  it.  Indeed,  as  to  the  policy  of  it,  I  can  say 
little  ;  but  the  case  was  this.  The  king  had  a  gallant 
army,  flushed  with  success,  and  things  hitherto  had 
gone  on  very  prosperously,  both  with  his  own  army  and 
elsewhere  ;  he  had  above  35,000  men  in  his  own  army, 
including  his  garrisons  left  at  Banbury,  Shrewsbury, 
Worcester,  Oxford,  Wallingford,  Abingdon,  Reading, 
and  places  adjacent.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Parlia- 
ment army  came  back  to  London  in  but  a  very  sorry 
condition  ;  *  for  what  with  their  loss  in  their  victory,  as 
they  called  it,  at  Edgehill,  their  sickness,  and  a  hasty 
march  to  London,  they  were  very  much  diminished, 
though  at  London  they  soon  recruited  them  again.  And 
this  prosperity  of  the  king's  affairs  might  encourage  him 
to  strike  this  blow,  thinking  to  bring  the  Parliament  to 
the  better  terms  by  the  apprehensions  of  the  superior 
strength  of  the  king's  forces. 

But,  however  it  was,  the  success  did  not  equally 
answer  the  king's  expectation.  The  vigorous  defence 
the  troops  posted  at  Brentford  made  as  above,  gave  the 
Earl  of  Essex  opportunity,  with  extraordinary  applica- 
tion, to  draw  his  forces  out  to  Turnham  Green.  And 
the  exceeding  alacrity  of  the  enemy  was  such,  that  their 
whole  army  appeared  with  them,  making  together  an 
army  of  24,000  men,  drawn  up  in  view  of  our  forces 
by  eight  o'clock  the  next  morning.  The  city  regiments 
were  placed  between  the  regular  troops,  and  all  together 

*  General  Ludlow,  in  his  Memoirs,  p.  52,  says  their  men  re- 
turned from  Warwick  to  London,  not  like  men  who  had  obtained 
a  victory,  but  like  men  that  had  been  beaten. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     189 

offered  us  battle,  but  we  were  not  in  a  condition  to 
accept  it.  The  king  indeed  was  sometimes  of  the  mind 
to  charge  them,  and  once  or  twice  ordered  parties 
to  advance  to  begin  to  skirmish,  but  upon  better 
advice  altered  his  mind,  and  indeed  it  was  the  wisest 
counsel  to  defer  the  fighting  at  that  time.  The  Parlia- 
ment generals  were  as  unfixed  in  their  resolutions,  on 
the  other  side,  as  the  king ;  sometimes  they  sent  out 
parties,  and  then  called  them  back  again.  One  strong 
party  of  near  3000  men  marched  off  towards  Acton, 
with  orders  to  amuse  us  on  that  side,  but  were  counter- 
manded. Indeed,  I  was  of  the  opinion  we  might  have 
ventured  the  battle,  for  though  the  Parliament's  army 
were  more  numerous,  yet  the  city  trained  bands,  which 
made  up  4000  of  their  foot,  were  not  much  esteemed, 
and  the  king  was  a  great  deal  stronger  in  horse  than 
they.  But  the  main  reason  that  hindered  the  engage- 
ment, was  want  of  ammunition,  which  the  king  having 
duly  weighed,  he  caused  the  carriages  and  cannon 
to  draw  off  first,  and  then  the  foot,  the  horse  con- 
tinuing to  face  the  enemy  till  all  was  clear  gone ;  and 
then  we  drew  off  too  and  marched  to  Kingston,  and 
the  next  day  to  Reading. 

Now  the  king  saw  his  mistake  in  not  continuing  his 
march  for  London,  instead  of  facing  about  to  fight  the 
enemy  at  Edgehill.  And  all  the  honour  we  had  gained 
in  so  many  successful  enterprises  lay  buried  in  this 
shameful  retreat  from  an  army  of  citizens'  wives ;  for 
truly  that  appearance  at  Turnham  Green  was  gay,  but 
not  great.  There  was  as  many  lookers-on  as  actors. 
The  crowds  of  ladies,  apprentices,  and  mob  was  so 
great,  that  when  the  parties  of  our  army  advanced,  and, 
as  they  thought,  to  charge,  the  coaches,  horsemen,  and 
crowd,  that  cluttered  away  to  be  out  of  harm's  way, 
looked  little  better  than  a  rout.  And  I  was  persuaded 
a  good  home  charge  from  our  horse  would  have  sent 


190     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

their  whole  army  after  them.  But  so  it  was,  that  this 
crowd  of  an  army  was  to  triumph  over  us,  and  they  did 
it,  for  all  the  kingdom  was  carefully  informed  how  their 
dreadful  looks  had  frightened  us  away. 

Upon  our  retreat,  the  Parliament  resent  this  attack, 
which  they  call  treacherous,  and  vote  no  accommoda- 
tion ;  but  they  considered  of  it  afterwards,  and  sent 
six  commissioners  to  the  king  with  propositions.  But 
the  change  of  the  scene  of  action  changed  the  terms  of 
peace,  and  now  they  made  terms  like  conquerors,  peti- 
tion him  to  desert  his  army,  and  return  to  the  Parlia- 
ment, and  the  like.  Had  his  Majesty,  at  the  head  of 
his  army,  with  the  full  reputation  they  had  before,  and 
in  the  ebb  of  their  affairs,  rested  at  Windsor,  and 
commenced  a  treaty,  they  had  certainly  made  more 
reasonable  proposals ;  but  now  the  scabbard  seemed  to 
be  thrown  away  on  both  sides. 

The  rest  of  the  winter  was  spent  in  strengthening 
parties  and  places,  also  in  fruitless  treaties  of  peace, 
messages,  remonstrances,  and  paper  war  on  both  sides, 
and  no  action  remarkable  happened  anywhere  that  I 
remember.  Yet  the  king  gained  ground  everywhere, 
and  his  forces  in  the  north  increased  under  the  Earl  of 
Newcastle ;  also  my  Lord  Goring,  then  only  called 
Colonel  Goring,  arrived  from  Holland,  bringing  three 
ships  laden  with  arms  and  ammunition,  and  notice 
that  the  queen  was  following  with  more.  Goring 
brought  4000  barrels  of  gunpowder,  and  20,000  small 
arms ;  all  which  came  very  seasonably,  for  the  king 
was  in  great  want  of  them,  especially  the  powder. 
Upon  this  recruit  the  Earl  of  Newcastle  draws  down 
to  York,  and  being  above  16,000  strong,  made  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax  give  ground,  and  retreat  to  Hull. 

Whoever  lay  still,  Prince  Rupert  was  always  abroad, 
and  I  chose  to  go  out  with  his  Highness  as  often  as  I 
had  opportunity,  for  hitherto  he  was  always  successful. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     191 

About  this  time  the  prince  being  at  Oxford,  I  gave 
him  intelligence  of  a  party  of  the  enemy  who  lived  a 
little  at  large,  too  much  for  good  soldiers,  about  Ciren- 
cester.  The  prince,  glad  of  the  news,  resolved  to 
attack  them,  and  though  it  was  a  wet  season,  and  the 
ways  exceeding  bad,  being  in  February,  yet  we  marched 
all  night  in  the  dark,  which  occasioned  the  loss  of  some 
horses  and  men  too,  in  sloughs  and  holes,  which  the 
darkness  of  the  night  had  suffered  them  to  fall  into. 
We  were  a  very  strong  party,  being  about  3000  horse 
and  dragoons,  and  coming  to  Cirencester  very  early  in 
the  morning,  to  our  great  satisfaction  the  enemy  were 
perfectly  surprised,  not  having  the  least  notice  of  our 
march,  which  answered  our  end  more  ways  than  one. 
However,  the  Earl  of  Stamford's  regiment  made  some 
resistance ;  but  the  town  having  no  works  to  defend 
it,  saving  a  slight  breastwork  at  the  entrance  of  the 
road,  with  a  turnpike,  our  dragoons  alighted,  and  forcing 
their  way  over  the  bellies  of  Stamford's  foot,  they  beat 
them  from  their  defence,  and  followed  them  at  their 
heels  into  the  town.  Stamford's  regiment  was  entirely 
cut  in  pieces,  and  several  others,  to  the  number  of  about 
800  men,  and  the  town  entered  without  any  other  re- 
sistance. We  took  1 200  prisoners,  3000  arms,  and 
the  county  magazine,  which  at  that  time  was  consider- 
able ;  for  there  was  about  1 20  barrels  of  powder,  and 
all  things  in  proportion. 

I  received  the  first  hurt  I  got  in  this  war  at  this 
action,  for  having  followed  the  dragoons  and  brought 
my  regiment  within  the  barricado  which  they  had  gained, 
a  musket  bullet  struck  my  horse  just  in  the  head,  and 
that  so  effectually  that  he  fell  down  as  dead  as  a  stone  all 
at  once.  The  fall  plunged  me  into  a  puddle  of  water 
and  daubed  me ;  and  my  man  having  brought  me  another 
horse  and  cleaned  me  a  little,  I  was  just  getting  up, 
when  another  bullet  struck  me  on  my  left  hand,  which 


192     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

I  had  just  clapped  on  the  horse's  mane  to  lift  myself  into 
the  saddle.  The  blow  broke  one  of  my  finders,  and 
bruised  my  hand  very  much  ;  and  it  proved  a  very  painful 
hurt  to  me.  For  the  present  I  did  not  much  concern 
myself  about  it,  but  made  my  man  tie  it  up  close  in  my 
handkerchief,  and  led  up  my  men  to  the  market-place, 
where  we  had  a  very  smart  brush  with  some  musketeers 
who  were  posted  in  the  churchyard;  but  our  dragoons 
soon  beat  them  out  there,  and  the  whole  town  was  then 
our  own.  We  made  no  stay  here,  but  marched  back 
with  all  our  booty  to  Oxford,  for  we  knew  the  enemy 
were  very  strong  at  Gloucester,  and  that  way. 

Much  about  the  same  time,  the  Earl  of  Northamp- 
ton, with  a  strong  party,  set  upon  Lichfield,  and  took 
the  town,  but  could  not  take  the  Close ;  but  they  beat 
a  body  of  4000  men  coming  to  the  relief  of  the  town, 
under  Sir  John  Gell,  of  Derbyshire,  and  Sir  William 
Brereton,  of  Cheshire,  and  killing  600  of  them,  dis- 
persed the  rest. 

Our  second  campaign  now  began  to  open ;  the  king 
marched  from  Oxford  to  relieve  Reading,  which  was 
besieged  by  the  Parliament  forces ;  but  Colonel  Field- 
ing, Lieutenant-Governor,  Sir  Arthur  Ashton  being 
wounded,  surrendered  to  Essex  before  the  king  could 
come  up ;  for  which  he  was  tried  by  martial  law,  and 
condemned  to  die,  but  the  king  forbore  to  execute  the 
sentence.  This  was  the  first  town  we  had  lost  in  the 
war,  for  still  the  success  of  the  king's  affairs  was  very 
encouraging.  This  bad  news,  however,  was  over- 
balanced by  an  account  brought  the  king  at  the  same 
time,  by  an  express  from  York,  that  the  queen  had 
landed  in  the  north,  and  had  brought  over  a  great 
magazine  of  arms  and  ammunition,  besides  some  men. 
Some  time  after  this  her  Majesty,  marching  southward 
to  meet  the  king,  joined  the  army  near  Edgehill,  where 
the  first  battle  was  fought.  She  brought  the  king 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     193 

3000  foot,  1 500  horse  and  dragoons,  six  pieces  of 
cannon,  1500  barrels  of  powder,  12,000  small  arms. 

During  this  prosperity  of  the  king's  affairs  his  armies 
increased  mightily  in  the  western  counties  also.  Sir 
William  Waller,  indeed,  commanded  for  the  Parlia- 
ment in  those  parts  too,  and  particularly  in  Dorsetshire, 
Hampshire,  and  Berkshire,  where  he  carried  on  their 
cause  but  too  fast ;  but  farther  west,  Sir  Nicholas 
Slanning,  Sir  Ralph  Hopton,  and  Sir  Bevil  Grenvile 
had  extended  the  king's  quarters  from  Cornwall  through 
Devonshire,  and  into  Somersetshire,  where  they  took 
Exeter,  Barnstaple,  and  Bideford ;  and  the  first  of 
these  they  fortified  very  well,  making  it  a  place  of 
arms  for  the  west,  and  afterwards  it  was  the  residence 
of  the  queen. 

At  last,  the  famous  Sir  William  Waller  and  the 
king's  forces  met,  and  came  to  a  pitched  battle,  where 
Sir  William  lost  all  his  honour  again.  This  was  at 
Roundway  Down  in  Wiltshire.  Waller  had  engaged 
our  Cornish  army  at  Lansdown,  and  in  a  very  obstinate 
fight  had  the  better  of  them,  and  made  them  retreat  to 
the  Devizes.  Sir  William  Hopton,  however,  having 
a  good  body  of  foot  untouched,  sent  expresses  and 
messengers  one  in  the  neck  of  another  to  the  king  for 
some  horse,  and  the  king  being  in  great  concern  for 
that  army,  who  were  composed  of  the  flower  of  the 
Cornish  men,  commanded  me  to  march  with  all  pos- 
sible secrecy,  as  well  as  expedition,  with  1200  horse 
and  dragoons  from  Oxford,  to  join  them.  We  set  out 
in  the  depth  of  the  night,  to  avoid,  if  possible,  any 
intelligence  being  given  of  our  route,  and  soon  joined 
with  the  Cornish  army,  when  it  was  as  soon  resolved 
to  give  battle  to  Waller  ;  and  give  him  his  due,  he 
was  as  forward  to  fight  as  we.  As  it  is  easy  to  meet 
when  both  sides  are  willing  to  be  found,  Sir  William 
Waller  met  us  upon  Roundway  Down,  where  we  had 


194     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

a  fair  field  on  both  sides,  and  room  enough  to  draw  up 
our  horse.  In  a  word,  there  was  little  ceremony  to 
the  work  ;  the  armies  joined,  and  we  charged  his 
horse  with  so  much  resolution,  that  they  quickly  fled, 
and  quitted  the  field ;  for  we  over-matched  him  in 
horse,  and  this  was  the  entire  destruction  of  their  army. 
For  their  infantry,  which  outnumbered  ours  by  1 500, 
were  now  at  our  mercy  ;  some  faint  resistance  they 
made,  just  enough  to  give  us  occasion  to  break  into 
their  ranks  with  our  horse,  where  we  gave  time  to  our 
foot  to  defeat  others  that  stood  to  their  work,  upon 
which  they  began  to  disband,  and  run  every  way  they 
could ;  but  our  horse  having  surrounded  them,  we 
made  a  fearful  havoc  of  them. 

We  lost  not  above  200  men  in  this  action ;  Waller 
lost  above  4000  killed  and  taken,  and  as  many  dis- 
persed that  never  returned  to  their  colours.  Those  of 
foot  that  escaped  got  into  Bristol,  and  Waller,  with  the 
poor  remains  of  his  routed  regiments,  got  to  London  ; 
so  that  it  is  plain  some  ran  east,  and  some  ran  west, 
that  is  to  say,  they  fled  every  way  they  could. 

My  going  with  this  detachment  prevented  my  being 
at  the  siege  of  Bristol,  which  Prince  Rupert  attacked 
much  about  the  same  time,  and  it  surrendered  in  three 
days.  The  Parliament  questioned  Colonel  Nathaniel 
Fiennes,  the  governor,  and  had  him  tried  as  a  coward 
by  a  court-martial,  and  condemned  to  die,  but  sus- 
pended the  execution  also,  as  the  king  did  the 
governor  of  Reading.  I  have  often  heard  Prince 
Rupert  say,  they  did  Colonel  Fiennes  wrong  in  that 
affair  ;  and  that  if  the  colonel  would  have  summoned 
him,  he  would  have  demanded  a  passport  of  the 
Parliament,  and  have  come  up  and  convinced  the 
court  that  Colonel  Fiennes  had  not  misbehaved  him- 
self, and  that  he  had  not  a  sufficient  garrison  to  defend 
a  city  of  that  extent ;  having  not  above  1 200  men  in 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     195 

the  town,  excepting  some  of  Waller's  runaways,  most 
of  whom  were  unfit  for  service,  and  without  arms ; 
and  that  the  citizens  in  general  being  disaffected  to 
him,  and  ready  on  the  first  occasion  to  open  the  gates 
to  the  king's  forces,  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  have 
kept  the  city.  "  And  when  I  had  farther  informed 
them,"  said  the  prince,  "  of  the  measures  I  had  taken 
for  a  general  assault  the  next  day,  I  am  confident  I 
should  have  convinced  them  that  I  had  taken  the  city 
by  storm,  if  he  had  not  surrendered." 

The  king's  affairs  were  now  in  a  very  good  posture, 
and  three  armies  in  the  north,  west,  and  in  the  centre, 
counted  in  the  musters  above  70,000  men,  besides 
small  garrisons  and  parties  abroad.  Several  of  the 
lords,  and  more  of  the  commons,  began  to  fall  off  from 
the  Parliament  and  make  their  peace  with  the  king  ; 
and  the  affairs  of  the  Parliament  began  to  look  very  ill. 
The  city  of  London  was  their  inexhaustible  support 
and  magazine  both  for  men,  money,  and  all  things 
necessary  ;  and  whenever  their  army  was  out  of  order, 
the  clergy  of  their  party  in  but  one  Sunday  or  two, 
would  preach  the  young  citizens  out  of  their  shops, 
the  labourers  from  their  masters,  into  the  army,  and 
recruit  them  on  a  sudden.  And  all  this  was  still 
owing  to  the  omission  I  first  observed,  of  not  march- 
ing to  London,  when  it  might  have  been  so  easily 
effected. 

We  had  now  another,  or  a  fairer  opportunity,  than 
before,  but  as  ill  use  was  made  of  it.  The  king,  as  I 
have  observed,  was  in  a  very  good  posture  ;  he  had 
three  large  armies  roving  at  large  over  the  kingdom. 
The  Cornish  army,  victorious  and  numerous,  had 
beaten  Waller,  secured  and  fortified  Exeter,  which  the 
queen  had  made  her  residence,  and  was  there  delivered 
of  a  daughter,  the  Princess  Henrietta  Maria,  after- 
wards Duchess  of  Orleans,  and  mother  of  the  Duchess- 


196     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Dowager  of  Savoy,  commonly  known  in  the  French 
style  by  the  title  of  Madam  Royal.  They  had  secured 
Salisbury,  Sherborne  Castle,  Weymouth,  Winchester, 
and  Basing-house,  and  commanded  the  whole  country, 
except  Bridgewater  and  Taunton,  Plymouth  and 
Lynn  ;  all  which  places  they  held  blocked  up.  The 
king  was  also  entirely  master  of  all  Wales,  Monmouth- 
shire, Cheshire,  Shropshire,  Staffordshire,  Worcester- 
shire, Oxfordshire,  Berkshire,  and  all  the  towns  from 
Windsor  up  the  Thames  to  Cirencester,  except  Read- 
ing and  Henley ;  and  of  the  whole  Severn,  except 
Gloucester. 

The  Earl  of  Newcastle  had  garrisons  in  every  strong 
place  in  the  north,  from  Berwick-upon-Tweed  to 
Boston  in  Lincolnshire,  and  Newark  -  upon  -  Trent, 
Hull  only  excepted,  whither  the  Lord  Fairfax  and 
his  son  Sir  Thomas  were  retreated,  their  troops  being 
routed  and  broken,  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  his  baggage, 
with  his  lady  and  servants  taken  prisoners,  and  himself 
hardly  escaping. 

And  now  a  great  council  of  war  was  held  in  the 
king's  quarters,  what  enterprise  to  go  upon  ;  and  it  hap- 
pened to  be  the  very  same  day  when  the  Parliament 
were  in  a  serious  debate  what  should  become  of  them, 
and  whose  help  they  should  seek.  And  indeed  they 
had  cause  for  it ;  and  had  our  counsels  been  as  ready 
and  well-grounded  as  theirs,  we  had  put  an  end  to  the 
war  in  a  month's  time. 

In  this  council  the  king  proposed  the  marching  to 
London  to  put  an  end  to  the  Parliament  and  encourage 
his  friends- and  loyal  subjects  in  Kent,  who  were  ready 
to  rise  for  him ;  and  showed  us  letters  from  the  Earl 
of  Newcastle,  wherein  he  offered  to  join  his  Majesty 
with  a  detachment  of  4000  horse  and  8000  foot,  if 
his  Majesty  thought  fit  to  march  southward,  and  yet 
leave  forces  sufficient  to  guard  the  north  from  any 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     197 

invasion.  I  confess,  when  I  saw  the  scheme  the  king 
had  himself  drawn  for  this  attempt,  I  felt  an  unusual 
satisfaction  in  my  mind,  from  the  hopes  that  we  might 
bring  this  war  to  some  tolerable  end ;  for  I  professed 
myself  on  all  occasions  heartily  weary  with  fighting 
with  friends,  brothers,  neighbours,  and  acquaintance ; 
and  I  made  no  question,  but  this  motion  of  the  king's 
would  effectually  bring  the  Parliament  to  reason. 

All  men  seemed  to  like  the  enterprise  but  the  Earl 
of  Worcester,  who,  on  particular  views  for  securing  the 
country  behind,  as  he  called  it,  proposed  the  taking  in 
the  town  of  Gloucester  and  Hereford  first.  He  made 
a  long  speech  of  the  danger  of  leaving  Massey,  an  active 
bold  fellow,  with  a  strong  party  in  the  heart  of  all  the 
king's  quarters,  ready  on  all  occasions  to  sally  out  and 
surprise  the  neighbouring  garrisons,  as  he  had  done 
Sudley  Castle  and  others  ;  and  of  the  ease  and  freedom 
to  all  those  western  parts  to  have  them  fully  cleared  of 
the  enemy.  Interest  presently  backs  this  advice,  and 
all  those  gentlemen  whose  estates  lay  that  way,  or 
whose  friends  lived  about  Worcester,  Shrewsbury, 
Bridgnorth,  or  the  borders,  and  who,  as  they  said, 
had  heard  the  frequent  wishes  of  the  country  to  have 
the  city  of  Gloucester  reduced,  fell  in  with  this  advice, 
alleging  the  consequence  it  was  for  the  commerce  of 
the  country  to  have  the  navigation  of  the  Severn  free, 
which  was  only  interrupted  by  this  one  town  from  the 
sea  up  to  Shrewsbury,  &c. 

I  opposed  this,  and  so  did  several  others.  Prince 
Rupert  was  vehemently  against  it ;  and  we  both  offered, 
with  the  troops  of  the  county,  to  keep  Gloucester 
blocked  up  during  the  king's  march  for  London,  so 
that  Massey  should  not  be  able  to  stir. 

This  proposal  made  the  Earl  of  Worcester's  party 
more  eager  for  the  siege  than  before,  for  they  had  no 
mind  to  a  blockade  which  would  leave  the  country  to 


198     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

maintain  the  troops  all  the  summer ;  and  of  all  men 
the  prince  did  not  please  them,  for,  he  having  no 
extraordinary  character  for  discipline,  his  company  was 
not  much  desired  even  by  our  friends.  Thus,  in  an  ill 
hour,  'twas  resolved  to  sit  down  before  Gloucester. 
The  king  had  a  gallant  army  of  28,000  men,  whereof 
1 1,000  horse,  the  finest  body  of  gentlemen  that  ever  I 
saw  together  in  my  life ;  their  horses  without  com- 
parison, and  their  equipages  the  finest  and  the  best  in 
the  world,  and  their  persons  Englishmen,  which,  I 
think,  is  enough  to  say  of  them. 

According  to  the  resolution  taken  in  the  council  of 
war,  the  army  marched  westward,  and  sat  down  before 
Gloucester  the  beginning  of  August.  There  we  spent 
a  month  to  the  least  purpose  that  ever  army  did.  Our 
men  received  frequent  affronts  from  the  desperate  sallies 
of  an  inconsiderable  enemy.  I  cannot  forbear  reflecting 
on  the  misfortunes  of  this  siege.  Our  men  were 
strangely  dispirited  in  all  the  assaults  they  gave  upon 
the  place ;  there  was  something  looked  like  disaster 
and  mismanagement,  and  our  men  went  on  with  an  ill 
will  and  no  resolution.  The  king  despised  the  place, 
and  the  king,  to  carry  it  sword  in  hand,  made  no 
regular  approaches,  and  the  garrison,  being  desperate, 
made  therefore  the  greater  slaughter.  In  this  work  our 
horse,  who  were  so  numerous  and  so  fine,  had  no 
employment.  Two  thousand  horse  had  been  enough 
for  this  business,  and  the  enemy  had  no  garrison  or  party 
within  forty  miles  of  us,  so  that  we  had  nothing  to  do 
but  look  on  with  infinite  regret  upon  the  losses  of  our 
foot. 

The  enemy  made  frequent  and  desperate  sallies,  in 
one  of  which  I  had  my  share.  I  was  posted  upon  a 
parade  or  place  of  arms,  with  part  of  my  regiment,  and 
part  of  Colonel  Goring's  regiment  of  horse,  in  order  to 
support  a  body  of  foot,  who  were  ordered  to  storm  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     199 

point  of  a  breastwork  which  the  enemy  had  raised  to 
defend  one  of  the  avenues  to  the  town.  The  foot  were 
beat  off  with  loss,  as  they  always  were  ;  and  Massey, 
the  governor,  not  content  to  have  beaten  them  from  his 
works,  sallies  out  with  near  400  men,  and  falling  in 
upon  the  foot  as  they  were  rallying  under  the  cover  of 
our  horse,  we  put  ourselves  in  the  best  posture  we  could 
to  receive  them.  As  Massey  did  not  expect,  I  sup- 
pose, to  engage  with  any  horse,  he  had  no  pikes  with 
him,  which  encouraged  us  to  treat  him  the  more  rudely  ; 
but  as  to  desperate  men  danger  is  no  danger,  when  he 
found  he  must  clear  his  hands  of  us,  before  he  could 
despatch  the  foot,  he  faces  up  to  us,  fires  but  one  volley 
of  his  small  shot,  and  fell  to  battering  us  with  the 
stocks  of  their  muskets  in  such  a  manner  that  one  would 
have  thought  they  had  been  madmen. 

We  at  first  despised  this  way  of  clubbing  us,  and 
charging  through  them,  laid  a  great  many  of  them  upon 
the  ground,  and  in  repeating  our  charge,  trampled 
more  of  them  under  our  horses'  feet ;  and  wheeling 
thus  continually,  beat  them  off  from  our  foot,  who  were 
just  upon  the  point  of  disbanding.  Upon  this  they 
charged  us  again  with  their  fire,  and  at  one  volley  killed 
thirty-three  or  thirty-four  men  and  horses  ;  and  had 
they  had  pikes  with  them,  I  know  not  what  we  should 
have  done  with  them.  But  at  last  charging  through 
them  again,  we  divided  them  ;  one  part  of  them  being 
hemmed  in  between  us  and  our  own  foot,  were  cut  in 
pieces  to  a  man  ;  the  rest,  as  I  understood  afterwards, 
retreated  into  the  town,  having  lost  300  of  their  men. 

In  this  last  charge  I  received  a  rude  blow  from  a 
stout  fellow  on  foot  with  the  butt  end  of  his  musket, 
which  perfectly  stunned  me,  and  fetched  me  off  from 
my  horse  ;  and  had  not  some  near  me  took  care  of  me, 
I  had  been  trod  to  death  by  our  own  men.  But  the 
fellow  being  immediately  killed,  and  my  friends  finding 


2OO     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

me  alive,  had  taken  me  up,  and  carried  me  off  some 
distance,  where  I  came  to  myself  again  after  some  time, 
but  knew  little  of  what  I  did  or  said  that  night.  This 
was  the  reason  why  I  say  I  afterwards  understood  the 
enemy  retreated ;  for  I  saw  no  more  what  they  did 
then,  nor  indeed  was  I  well  of  this  blow  for  all  the  rest 
of  the  summer,  but  had  frequent  pains  in  my  head, 
dizzinesses  and  swimming,  that  gave  me  some  fears  the 
blow  had  injured  the  skull ;  but  it  wore  off  again,  nor 
did  it  at  all  hinder  my  attending  my  charge. 

This  action,  I  think,  was  the  only  one  that  looked 
like  a  defeat  given  the  enemy  at  this  siege.  We  killed 
them  near  300  men,  as  I  have  said,  and  lost  about  sixty 
of  our  troopers. 

All  this  time,  while  the  king  was  harassing  and 
weakening  the  best  army  he  ever  saw  together  during 
the  whole  war,  the  Parliament  generals,  or  rather 
preachers,  were  recruiting  theirs ;  for  the  preachers 
were  better  than  drummers  to  raise  volunteers,  zealously 
exhorting  the  London  dames  to  part  with  their  hus- 
bands, and  the  city  to  send  some  of  their  trained  bands 
to  join  the  army  for  the  relief  of  Gloucester  ;  and  now 
they  began  to  advance  towards  us. 

The  king  hearing  of  the  advance  of  Essex's  army, 
who  by  this  time  was  come  to  Aylesbury,  had  summoned 
what  forces  he  had  within  call,  to  join  him ;  and  ac- 
cordingly he  received  3000  foot  from  Somersetshire ; 
and  having  battered  the  town  for  thirty-six  hours,  and 
made  a  fair  breach,  resolves  upon  an  assault,  if  possible, 
to  carry  the  town  before  the  enemy  came  up.  The 
assault  was  begun  about  seven  in  the  evening,  and  the 
men  boldly  mounted  the  breach  ;  but  after  a  very 
obstinate  and  bloody  dispute,  were  beaten  out  again  by 
the  besieged  with  great  loss. 

Being  thus  often  repulsed,  and  the  Earl  of  Essex's 
army  approaching,  the  king  calls  a  council  of  war,  and 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     201 

proposed  to  fight  Essex's  army.  The  officers  of  the 
horse  were  for  fighting ;  and  without  doubt  we  were 
superior  to  him  both  in  number  and  goodness  of  our 
horse,  but  the  foot  were  not  in  an  equal  condition ; 
and  the  colonels  of  foot  representing  to  the  king  the 
weakness  of  their  regiments,  and  how  their  men  had 
been  baulked  and  disheartened  at  this  cursed  siege, 
the  graver  counsel  prevailed,  and  it  was  resolved  to 
raise  the  siege,  and  retreat  towards  Bristol,  till  the 
army  was  recruited.  Pursuant  to  this  resolution,  the 
5th  of  September,  the  king,  having  before  sent  away 
his  heavy  cannon  and  baggage,  raised  the  siege,  and 
marched  to  Berkeley  Castle.  The  Earl  of  Essex  came 
the  next  day  to  Birdlip  Hills ;  and  understanding  by 
messengers  from  Colonel  Massey,  that  the  siege  was 
raised,  sends  a  recruit  of  2500  men  into  the  city,  and 
followed  us  himself  with  a  great  body  of  horse. 

This  body  of  horse  showed  themselves  to  us  once 
in  a  large  field  fit  to  have  entertained  them  in ;  and 
our  scouts  having  assured  us  they  were  not  above 
4000,  and  had  no  foot  with  them,  the  king  ordered  a 
detachment  of  about  the  same  number  to  face  them. 
I  desired  his  Majesty  to  let  us  have  two  regiments 
of  dragoons  with  us,  which  was  then  800  men  in  a 
regiment,,  lest  there  might  be  some  dragoons  among 
the  enemy ;  which  the  king  granted,  and  accordingly 
we  marched,  and  drew  up  in  view  of  them.  They 
stood  their  ground,  having,  as  they  supposed,  some 
advantage  of  the  manner  they  were  posted  in,  and 
expected  we  would  charge  them.  The  king,  who  did 
us  the  honour  to  command  this  party,  finding  they 
would  not  stir,  calls  me  to  him,  and  ordered  me  with 
the  dragoons,  and  my  own  regiment,  to  take  a  circuit 
round  by  a  village  to  a  certain  lane,  where  in  their 
retreat  they  must  have  passed,  and  which  opened  to 
a  small  common  on  the  flank  ;  with  orders,  if  they 


2O2     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

engaged,  to  advance  and  charge  them  in  the  flank.  I 
marched  immediately ;  but  though  the  country  about 
there  was  almost  all  enclosures,  yet  their  scouts  were 
so  vigilant,  that  they  discovered  me,  and  gave  notice 
to  the  body ;  upon  which  their  whole  party  moved  to 
the  left,  as  if  they  intended  to  charge  me,  before  the 
king  with  his  body  of  horse  could  come.  But  the  king 
was  too  vigilant  to  be  circumvented  so ;  and  therefore 
his  Majesty  perceiving  this,  sends  away  three  regiments 
of  horse  to  second  me,  and  a  messenger  before  them, 
to  order  me  to  halt,  and  expect  the  enemy,  for  that  he 
would  follow  with  the  whole  body. 

But  before  this  order  reached  me,  I  had  halted  for 
some  time ;  for,  finding  myself  discovered,  and  not 
judging  it  safe  to  be  entirely  cut  off  from  the  main 
body,  I  stopped  at  the  village,  and  causing  my  dragoons 
to  alight,  and  line  a  thick  hedge  on  my  left,  I  drew 
up  my  horse  just  at  the  entrance  into  the  village  open- 
ing to  a  common.  The  enemy  came  up  on  the  trot  to 
charge  me,  but  were  saluted  with  a  terrible  fire  from 
the  dragoons  out  of  the  hedge,  which  killed  them  near 
IOO  men.  This  being  a  perfect  surprise  to  them,  they 
halted,  and  just  at  that  moment  they  received  orders 
from  their  main  body  to  retreat ;  the  king  at  the  same 
time  appearing  upon  some  small  heights  in  their  rear, 
which  obliged  them  to  think  of  retreating,  or  coming 
to  a  general  battle,  which  was  none  of  their  design. 

I  had  no  occasion  to  follow  them,  not  being  in  a 
condition  to  attack  their  whole  body  ;  but  the  dragoons 
coming  out  into  the  common,  gave  them  another  volley 
at  a  distance,  which  reached  them  effectually,  for  it 
killed  about  twenty  of  them,  and  wounded  more;  but 
they  drew  off,  and  never  fired  a  shot  at  us,  fearing  to 
be  enclosed  between  two  parties,  and  so  marched  away 
to  their  general's  quarters,  leaving  ten  or  twelve  more 
of  their  fellows  killed,  and  about  180  horses.  Our 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     203 

men,  after  the  country  fashion,  gave  them  a  shout  at 
parting,  to  let  them  see  we  knew  they  were  afraid 
of  us. 

However,  this  relieving  of  Gloucester  raised  the 
spirits  as  well  as  the  reputation  of  the  Parliament 
forces,  and  was  a  great  defeat  to  us ;  and  from  this 
time  things  began  to  look  with  a  melancholy  aspect, 
for  the  prosperous  condition  of  the  king's  affairs  began 
to  decline.  The  opportunities  he  had  let  slip  were 
never  to  be  recovered,  and  the  Parliament,  in  their 
former  extremity,  having  voted  an  invitation  to  the 
Scots  to  march  to  their  assistance,  we  had  now  new 
enemies  to  encounter ;  and,  indeed,  there  began  the 
ruin  of  his  Majesty's  affairs,  for  the  Earl  of  Newcastle, 
not  able  to  defend  himself  against  the  Scots  on  his  rear, 
the  Earl  of  Manchester  in  his  front,  and  Sir  Thomas 
Fairfax  on  his  flank,  was  everywhere  routed  and  de- 
feated, and  his  forces  obliged  to  quit  the  field  to  the 
enemy. 

About  this  time  it  was  that  we  first  began  to  hear  of 
one  Oliver  Cromwell,  who,  like  a  little  cloud,  rose  out 
of  the  east,  and  spread  first  into  the  north,  till  it  shed 
down  a  flood  that  overwhelmed  the  three  kingdoms. 

He  first  was  a  private  captain  of  horse,  but  now 
commanded  a  regiment  whom  he  armed  cap-a-pie  a  la 
cuirassier  ;  and,  joining  with  the  Earl  of  Manchester, 
the  first  action  we  heard  of  him  that  made  him  any- 
thing famous  was  about  Grantham,  where,  with  only 
his  own  regiment,  he  defeated  twenty-four  troops  of 
horse  and  dragoons  of  the  king's  forces ;  then,  at 
Gainsborough,  with  two  regiments,  his  own  of  horse 
and  one  of  dragoons,  where  he  defeated  near  3000  of 
the  Earl  of  Newcastle's  men,  killed  Lieutenant- Gene- 
ral Cavendish,  brother  to  the  Earl  of  Devonshire,  who 
commanded  them,  and  relieved  Gainsborough ;  and 
though  the  whole  army  came  in  to  the  rescue,  he 


204     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

made  good  his  retreat  to  Lincoln  with  little  loss ;  and 
the  next  week  he  defeated  Sir  John  Henderson  at 
Winceby,  near  Horncastle,  with  sixteen  regiments  of 
horse  and  dragoons,  himself  having  not  half  that 
number;  killed  the  Lord  Widdrington,  Sir  Ingram 
Hopton,  and  several  gentlemen  of  quality.  Thus  this 
firebrand  of  war  began  to  blaze,  and  he  soon  grew  a 
terror  to  the  north ;  for  victory  attended  him  like  a 
page  of  honour,  and  he  was  scarce  ever  known  to  be 
beaten  during  the  whole  war. 

Now  we  began  to  reflect  again  on  the  misfortune  of 
our  master's  counsels.  Had  we  marched  to  London, 
instead  of  besieging  Gloucester,  we  had  finished  the 
war  with  a  stroke.  The  Parliament's  army  was  in  a 
most  despicable  condition,  and  had  never  been  recruited, 
had  we  not  given  them  a  month's  time,  which  we 
lingered  away  at  this  fatal  town  of  Gloucester.  But 
'twas  too  late  to  reflect ;  we  were  a  disheartened  army, 
but  we  were  not  beaten  yet,  nor  broken.  We  had  a 
large  country  to  recruit  in,  and  we  lost  no  time,  but 
raised  men  apace.  In  the  meantime  his  Majesty,  after 
a  short  stay  at  Bristol,  makes  back  again  towards  Oxford 
with  a  part  of  the  foot  and  all  the  horse. 

At  Cirencester  we  had  a  brush  again  with  Essex ; 
that  town  owed  us  a  shrewd  turn  for  having  handled 
them  coarsely  enough  before,  when  Prince  Rupert  seized 
the  county  magazine.  I  happened  to  be  in  the  town 
that  night  with  Sir  Nicholas  Crisp,  whose  regiment  of 
horse  quartered  there  with  Colonel  Spencer  and  some 
foot ;  my  own  regiment  was  gone  before  to  Oxford. 
About  ten  at  night,  a  party  of  Essex's  men  beat  up  our 
quarters  by  surprise,  just  as  we  had  served  them  before. 
They  fell  in  with  us,  just  as  people  were  going  to  bed, 
and  having  beaten  the  out-guards,  were  gotten  into  the 
middle  of  the  town  before  our  men  could  get  on  horse- 
back. Sir  Nicholas  Crisp,  hearing  the  alarm,  gets  up, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     205 

and  with  some  of  his  clothes  on,  and  some  off,  comes 
into  my  chamber.  "We  are  all  undone,"  says  he,  "the 
Roundheads  are  upon  us."  We  had  but  little  time  to 
consult,  but  being  in  one  of  the  principal  inns  in  the  town, 
we  presently  ordered  the  gates  of  the  inn  to  be  shut, 
and  sent  to  all  the  inns  where  our  men  were  quartered 
to  do  the  like,  with  orders,  if  they  had  any  back-doors, 
or  ways  to  get  out,  to  come  to  us.  By  this  means, 
however,  we  got  so  much  time  as  to  get  on  horseback, 
and  so  many  of  our  men  came  to  us  by  back  ways,  that 
we  had  near  300  horse  in  the  yards  and  places  behind 
the  house.  And  now  we  began  to  think  of  breaking 
out  by  a  lane  which  led  from  the  back  side  of  the  inn, 
but  a  new  accident  determined  us  another,  though  a 
worse  way. 

The  enemy  being  entered,  and  our  men  cooped  up 
in  the  yards  of  the  inns,  Colonel  Spencer,  the  other 
colonel,  whose  regiment  of  horse  lay  also  in  the  town, 
had  got  on  horseback  before  us,  and  engaged  with  the 
enemy,  but  being  overpowered,  retreated  fighting,  and 
sends  to  Sir  Nicholas  Crisp  for  help.  Sir  Nicholas, 
moved  to  see  the  distress  of  his  friend,  turning  to  me, 
says  he,  "  What  can  we  do  for  him  ? "  I  told  him 
I  thought  'twas  time  to  help  him,  if  possible ;  upon 
which,  opening  the  inn  gates,  we  sallied  out  in  very 
good  order,  about  300  horse.  And  several  of  the 
troops  from  other  parts  of  the  town  joining  us,  we 
recovered  Colonel  Spencer,  and  charging  home,  beat 
back  the  enemy  to  their  main  body.  But  finding  their 
foot  drawn  up  in  the  churchyard,  and  several  detach- 
ments moving  to  charge  us,  we  retreated  in  as  good 
order  as  we  could.  They  did  not  think  fit  to  pursue 
us,  but  they  took  all  the  carriages  which  were  under 
the  convoy  of  this  party,  and  laden  with  provisions  and 
ammunition,  and  above  500  of  our  horse,  the  foot 
shifted  away  as  well  as  they  could.  Thus  we  made 


206     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

off  in  a  shattered  condition  towards  Farringdon,  and  so 
to  Oxford,  and  I  was  very  glad  my  regiment  was  not 
there. 

We  had  small  rest  at  Oxford,  or  indeed  anywhere 
else ;  for  the  king  was  marched  from  thence,  and  we 
followed  him.  I  was  something  uneasy  at  my  absence 
from  my  regiment,  and  did  not  know  how  the  king 
might  resent  it,  which  caused  me  to  ride  after  them 
with  all  expedition.  But  the  armies  were  engaged 
that  very  day  at  Newbury,  and  I  came  in  too  late. 
I  had  not  behaved  myself  so  as  to  be  suspected  of  a 
wilful  shunning  the  action  ;  but  a  colonel  of  a  regiment 
ought  to  avoid  absence  from  his  regiment  in  time  of 
fight,  be  the  excuse  never  so  just,  as  carefully  as  he 
would  a  surprise  in  his  quarters.  The  truth  is,  'twas 
an  error  of  my  own,  and  owing  to  two  days'  stay  I 
made  at  the  Bath,  where  I  met  with  some  ladies  who 
were  my  relations.  And  this  is  far  from  being  an 
excuse  ;  for  if  the  king  had  been  a  Gustavus  Adolphus, 
I  had  certainly  received  a  check  for  it. 

This  fight  was  very  obstinate,  and  could  our  horse 
have  come  to  action  as  freely  as  the  foot,  the  Parlia- 
ment army  had  suffered  much  more  ;  for  we  had  here 
a  much  better  body  of  horse  than  they,  and  we  never 
failed  beating  them  where  the  weight  of  the  work  lay 
upon  the  horse. 

Here  the  city  train-bands,  of  which  there  was  two 
regiments,  and  whom  we  used  to  despise,  fought  very 
well.  They  lost  one  of  their  colonels,  and  several 
officers  in  the  action  ;  and  I  heard  our  men  say,  they 
behaved  themselves  as  well  as  any  forces  the  Parliament 
had. 

The  Parliament  cried  victory  here  too,  as  they 
always  did ;  and  indeed  where  the  foot  were  con- 
cerned they  had  some  advantage  ;  but  our  horse  de- 
feated them  evidently.  The  king  drew  up  his  army 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     207 

in  battalia,  in  person,  and  faced  them  all  the  next  day, 
inviting  them  to  renew  the  fight ;  but  they  had  no 
stomach  to  come  on  again. 

It  was  a  kind  of  a  hedge  fight,  for  neither  army  was 
drawn  out  in  the  field  ;  if  it  had,  'twould  never  have 
held  from  six  in  the  morning  to  ten  at  night.  But 
they  fought  for  advantages  ;  sometimes  one  side  had  the 
better,  sometimes  another.  They  fought  twice  through 
the  town,  in  at  one  end,  and  out  at  the  other ;  and  in 
the  hedges  and  lanes,  with  exceeding  fury.  The  king 
lost  the  most  men,  his  foot  having  suffered  for  want  of 
the  succour  of  their  horse,  who  on  two  several  occa- 
sions could  not  come  at  them.  But  the  Parliament 
foot  suffered  also,  and  two  regiments  were  entirely  cut 
in  pieces,  and  the  king  kept  the  field. 

Essex,  the  Parliament  general,  had  the  pillage  of  the 
dead,  and  left  us  to  bury  them  ;  for  while  we  stood  all 
day  to  our  arms,  having  given  them  a  fair  field  to  fight 
us  in,  their  camp  rabble  stripped  the  dead  bodies,  and 
they  not  daring  to  venture  a  second  engagement  with 
us,  marched  away  towards  London. 

The  king  lost  in  this  action  the  Earls  of  Carnarvon 
and  Sunderland,  the  Lord  Falkland,  a  French  marquis 
and  some  very  gallant  officers,  and  about  1200  men. 
The  Earl  of  Carnarvon  was  brought  into  an  inn  in 
Newbury,  where  the  king  came  to  see  him.  He  had 
just  life  enough  to  speak  to  his  Majesty,  and  died  in 
his  presence.  The  king  was  exceedingly  concerned 
for  him,  and  was  observed  to  shed  tears  at  the  sight  of 
it.  We  were  indeed  all  of  us  troubled  for  the  loss  of 
so  brave  a  gentleman,  but  the  concern  our  royal  master 
discovered,  moved  us  more  than  ordinary.  Everybody 
endeavoured  to  have  the  king  out  of  the  room,  but  he 
wouM  not  stir  from  the  bedside,  till  he  saw  all  hopes  of 
life  was  gone. 

The  indefatigable  industry  of  the  king,  his  servants 


2o8     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

and  friends,  continually  to  supply  and  recruit  his  forces, 
and  to  harass  and  fatigue  the  enemy,  was  such,  that  we 
should  still  have  given  a  good  account  of  the  war  had 
the  Scots  stood  neuter.  But  bad  news  came  every  day 
out  of  the  north ;  as  for  other  places,  parties  were  al- 
ways in  action.  Sir  William  Waller  and  Sir  Ralph 
Hopton  beat  one  another  by  turns ;  and  Sir  Ralph 
had  extended  the  king's  quarters  from  Launceston  in 
Cornwall,  to  Farnham  in  Surrey,  where  he  gave  Sir 
William  Waller  a  rub,  and  drove  him  into  the  castle. 
But  in  the  north,  the  storm  grew  thick,  the  Scots  ad- 
vanced to  the  borders,  and  entered  England  in  con- 
federacy with  the  Parliament,  against  their  king ;  for 
which  the  Parliament  requited  them  afterwards  as  they 
deserved. 

Had  it  not  been  for  this  Scotch  army,  the  Parliament 
had  easily  been  reduced  to  terms  of  peace ;  but  after 
this  they  never  made  any  proposals  fit  for  the  king 
to  receive.  Want  of  success  before  had  made  them 
differ  among  themselves.  Essex  and  Waller  could 
never  agree ;  the  Earl  of  Manchester  and  the  Lord 
Willoughby  differed  to  the  highest  degree ;  and  the 
king's  affairs  went  never  the  worse  for  it.  But  this 
storm  in  the  north  ruined  us  all ;  for  the  Scots  pre- 
vailed in  Yorkshire,  and  being  joined  with  Fairfax, 
Manchester,  and  Cromwell,  carried  all  before  them ; 
so  that  the  king  was  obliged  to  send  Prince  Rupert, 
with  a  body  of  4000  horse,  to  the  assistance  of  the 
Earl  of  Newcastle,  where  that  prince  finished  the 
destruction  of  the  king's  interest,  by  the  rashest  and 
unaccountablest  action  in  the  world,  of  which  I  shall 
speak  in  its  place. 

Another  action  of  the  king's,  though  in  itself  no 
greater  a  cause  of  offence  than  the  calling  the  Scots  into 
the  nation,  gave  great  offence  in  general,  and  even  the 
king's  own  friends  disliked  it ;  and  was  carefully 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     209 

improved  by  his  enemies  to  the  disadvantage  of  the 
king,  and  of  his  cause. 

The  rebels  in  Ireland  had,  ever  since  the  bloody 
massacre  of  the  Protestants,  maintained  a  war  against 
the  English,  and  the  Earl  of  Ormond  was  general  and 
governor  for  the  king.  The  king,  finding  his  affairs 
pinch  him  at  home,  sends  orders  to  the  Earl  of 
Ormond  to  consent  to  a  cessation  of  arms  with  the 
rebels,  and  to  ship  over  certain  of  his  regiments  hither 
to  his  Majesty's  assistance.  'Tis  true,  the  Irish  had 
deserved  to  be  very  ill  treated  by  the  English  ;  but 
while  the  Parliament  pressed  the  king  with  a  cruel  and 
unnatural  war  at  home,  and  called  in  an  army  out  of 
Scotland  to  support  their  quarrel  with  their  king,  I 
could  never  be  convinced,  that  it  was  such  a  dishonour- 
able action  for  the  king  to  suspend  the  correction  of  his 
Irish  rebels  till  he  was  in  a  capacity  to  do  it  with 
safety  to  himself;  or  to  delay  any  farther  assistance  to 
preserve  himself  at  home ;  and  the  troops  he  recalled 
being  his  own,  it  was  no  breach  of  his  honour  to  make 
use  of  them,  since  he  now  wanted  them  for  his  own 
security  against  those  who  fought  against  him  at 
home. 

But  the  king  was  persuaded  to  make  one  step  farther, 
and  that,  I.  confess,  was  unpleasing  to  us  all ;  and  some 
of  his  best  and  most  faithful  servants  took  the  freedom 
to  speak  plainly  to  him  of  it ;  and  that  was  bringing 
some  regiments  of  the  Irish  themselves  over.  This 
cast,  as  we  thought,  an  odium  upon  our  whole  nation, 
being  some  of  those  very  wretches  who  had  dipped  their 
hands  in  the  innocent  blood  of  the  Protestants,  and, 
with  unheard-of  butcheries,  had  massacred  so  many 
thousands  of  English  in  cool  blood. 

Abundance  of  gentlemen  forsook  the  king  upon  this 
score ;  and  seeing  they  could  not  brook  the  fighting  in 
conjunction  with  this  wicked  generation,  came  into  the 


2io     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

declaration  of  the  Parliament,  and  making  composition 
for  their  estates,  lived  retired  lives  all  the  rest  of  the 
war,  or  went  abroad. 

But  as  exigences  and  necessities  oblige  us  to  do 
things  which  at  other  times  we  would  not  do,  and  is, 
as  to  man,  some  excuse  for  such  things ;  so  I  cannot 
but  think  the  guilt  and  dishonour  of  such  an  action 
must  lie,  very  much  of  it,  at  least,  at  their  doors,  who 
drove  the  king  to  these  necessities  and  distresses,  by 
calling  in  an  army  of  his  own  subjects  whom  he  had 
not  injured,  but  had  complied  with  them  in  every- 
thing, to  make  war  upon  him  without  any  provocation. 

As  to  the  quarrel  between  the  king  and  his  Parlia- 
ment, there  may  something  be  said  on  both  sides ;  and 
the  king  saw  cause  himself  to  disown  and  dislike  some 
things  he  had  done,  which  the  Parliament  objected 
against,  such  as  levying  money  without  consent  of 
Parliament,  infractions  on  their  privileges,  and  the 
like.  Here,  I  say,  was  some  room  for  an  argument  at 
least,  and  concessions  on  both  sides  were  needful  to 
come  to  a  peace.  But  for  the  Scots,  all  their  demands 
had  been  answered,  all  their  grievances  had  been  re- 
dressed, they  had  made  articles  with  their  sovereign, 
and  he  had  performed  those  articles ;  their  capital 
enemy  Episcopacy  was  abolished ;  they  had  not  one 
thing  to  demand  of  the  king  which  he  had  not  granted. 
And  therefore  they  had  no  more  cause  to  take  up  arms 
against  their  sovereign  than  they  had  against  the  Grand 
Seignior.  But  it  must  for  ever  lie  against  them  as  a 
brand  of  infamy,  and  as  a  reproach  on  their  whole 
nation  that,  purchased  by  the  Parliament's  money, 
they  sold  their  honesty,  and  rebelled  against  their  king 
for  hire ;  and  it  was  not  many  years  before,  as  I  have 
said  already,  they  were  fully  paid  the  wages  of  their 
unrighteousness,  and  chastised  for  their  treachery  by 
the  very  same  people  whom  they  thus  basely  assisted. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     211 

Then  they  would  have  retrieved  it,  if  it  had  not  been 
too  late. 

But  I  could  not  but  accuse  this  age  of  injustice  and 
partiality,  who  while  they  reproached  the  king  for  his 
cessation  of  arms  with  the  Irish  rebels,  and  not  prose- 
cuting them  with  the  utmost  severity,  though  he  was 
constrained  by  the  necessities  of  the  war  to  do  it, 
could  yet,  at  the  same  time,  justify  the  Scots  taking  up 
arms  in  a  quarrel  they  had  no  concern  in,  and  against 
their  own  king,  with  whom  they  had  articled  and 
capitulated,  and  who  had  so  punctually  complied  with 
all  their  demands,  that  they  had  no  claim  upon  him, 
no  grievances  to  be  redressed,  no  oppression  to  cry  out 
of,  nor  could  ask  anything  of  him  which  he  had  not 
granted. 

But  as  no  action  in  the  world  is  so  vile,  but  the 
actors  can  cover  with  some  specious  pretence,  so  the 
Scots  now  passing  into  England  publish  a  declaration 
to  justify  their  assisting  the  Parliament.  To  which  I 
shall  only  say,  in  my  opinion,  it  was  no  justification  at 
all ;  for  admit  the  Parliament's  quarrel  had  been  never 
so  just,  it  could  not  be  just  in  them  to  aid  them,  be- 
cause 'twas  against  their  own  king  too,  to  whom  they 
had  sworn  allegiance,  or  at  least  had  crowned  him, 
and  thereby  had  recognised  his  authority.  For  if  mal- 
administration be,  according  to  Prynne's  doctrine,  or 
according  to  their  own  Buchanan,  a  sufficient  reason 
for  subjects  to  take  up  arms  against  their  prince,  the 
breach  of  his  coronation  oath  being  supposed  to  dis- 
solve the  oath  of  allegiance,  which  however  I  cannot 
believe ;  yet  this  can  never  be  extended  to  make  it 
lawful,  that  because  a  king  of  England  may,  by  mal- 
administration, discharge  the  subjects  of  England  from 
their  allegiance,  that  therefore  the  subjects  of  Scotland 
may  take  up  arms  against  the  King  of  Scotland,  he 
having  not  infringed  the  compact  of  government  as  to 


212     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

them,  and  they  having  nothing  to  complain  of  for 
themselves.  Thus  I  thought  their  own  arguments 
were  against  them,  and  Heaven  seemed  to  concur  with 
it;  for  although  they  did  carry  the  cause  for  the 
English  rebels,  yet  the  most  of  them  left  their  bones 
here  in  the  quarrel. 

But  what  signifies  reason  to  the  drum  and  the 
trumpet !  The  Parliament  had  the  supreme  argument 
with  those  men,  viz. ,  the  money ;  and  having  accordingly 
advanced  a  good  round  sum,  upon  payment  of  this  (for 
the  Scots  would  not  stir  a  foot  without  it)  they  entered 
England  on  the  I5th  of  January  i643[~4],  with  an 
army  of  12,000  men,  under  the  command  of  old  Leslie, 
now  Earl  of  Leven,  an  old  soldier  of  great  experience, 
having  been  bred  to  arms  from  a  youth  in  the  service 
of  the  Prince  of  Orange. 

The  Scots  were  no  sooner  entered  England  but  they 
were  joined  by  all  the  friends  to  the  Parliament  party 
in  the  north ;  and  first,  Colonel  Grey,  brother  to  the 
Lord  Grey,  joined  them  with  a  regiment  of  horse,  and 
several  out  of  Westmoreland  and  Cumberland,  and  so 
they  advanced  to  Newcastle,  which  they  summon  to 
surrender.  The  Earl  of  Newcastle,  who  rather  saw 
than  was  able  to  prevent  this  storm,  was  in  Newcastle, 
and  did  his  best  to  defend  it ;  but  the  Scots,  increased 
by  this  time  to  above  20,000,  lay  close  siege  to  the 
place,  which  was  but  meanly  fortified,  and  having 
repulsed  the  garrison  upon  several  sallies,  and  pressing 
the  place  very  close,  after  a  siege  of  twelve  days,  or 
thereabouts,  they  enter  the  town  sword  in  hand.  The 
Earl  of  Newcastle  got  away,  and  afterwards  gathered 
what  forces  together  he  could,  but  [was]  not  strong 
enough  to  hinder  the  Scots  from  advancing  to  Durham, 
which  he  quitted  to  them,  nor  to  hinder  the  ponjunc- 
tion  of  the  Scots  with  the  forces  of  Fairfax,  Man- 
chester, and  Cromwell.  Whereupon  the  earl,  seeing 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     213 

all  things  thus  going  to  wreck,  he  sends  his  horse 
away,  and  retreats  with  his  foot  into  York,  making  all 
necessary  preparations  for  a  vigorous  defence  there,  in 
case  he  should  be  attacked,  which  he  was  pretty  sure 
of,  as  indeed  afterwards  happened.  York  was  in  a 
very  good  posture  of  defence,  the  fortifications  very 
regular,  and  exceeding  strong ;  well  furnished  with 
provisions,  and  had  now  a  garrison  of  12,000  men  in 
it.  The  governor  under  the  Earl  of  Newcastle  was 
Sir  Thomas  Glemham,  a  good  soldier,  and  a  gentleman 
brave  enough. 

The  Scots,  as  I  have  said,  having  taken  Durham, 
Tynemouth  Castle,  and  Sunderland,  and  being  joined 
by  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax,  who  had  taken  Selby,  resolve, 
with  their  united  strength,  to  besiege  York ;  but  when 
they  came  to  view  the  city,  and  saw  a  plan  of  the 
works,  and  had  intelligence  of  the  strength  of  the 
garrison,  they  sent  expresses  to  Manchester  and  Crom- 
well for  help,  who  came  on,  and  joined  them  with 
9000,  making  together  about  30,000  men,  rather 
more  than  less. 

Now  had  the  Earl  of  Newcastle's  repeated  mes- 
sengers convinced  the  king  that  it  was  absolutely 
necessary  to  send  some  forces  to  his  assistance,  or  else 
all  would  be  lost  in  the  north.  Whereupon  Prince 
Rupert  was  detached,  with  orders  first  to  go  into  Lan- 
cashire and  relieve  Lathom  House,  defended  by  the 
brave  Countess  of  Derby,  and  then,  taking  all  the 
forces  he  could  collect  in  "Cheshire,  Lancashire,  and 
Yorkshire,  to  march  to  relieve  York. 

The  prince  marched  from  Oxford  with  but  three 
regiments  of  horse  and  one  of  dragoons,  making  in  all 
about  2800  men.  The  colonels  of  horse  were  Colonel 
Charles  Goring,  the  Lord  Byron,  and  myself;  the 
dragoons  were  of  Colonel  Smith.  In  our  march  we 
were  joined  by  a  regiment  of  horse  from  Banbury,  one 


214     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

of  dragoons  from  Bristol,  and  three  regiments  of  horse 
from  Chester,  so  that  when  we  came  into  Lancashire 
we  were  about  5000  horse  and  dragoons.  These 
horse  we  received  from  Chester  were  those  who, 
having  been  at  the  siege  of  Nantwich,  were  obliged 
to  raise  the  siege  by  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax ;  and  the 
foot  having  yielded,  the  horse  made  good  their  retreat 
to  Chester,  being  about  2000,  of  whom  three  regi- 
ments now  joined  us.  We  received  also  2000  foot 
from  West  Chester,  and  2000  more  out  of  Wales,  and 
with  this  strength  we  entered  Lancashire.  We  had 
not  much  time  to  spend,  and  a  great  deal  of  work 
to  do. 

Bolton  and  Liverpool  felt  the  first  fury  of  our 
prince ;  at  Bolton,  indeed,  he  had  some  provocation, 
for  here  we  were  like  to  be  beaten  off.  When  first 
the  prince  came  to  the  town,  he  sent  a  summons  to 
demand  the  town  for  the  king,  but  received  no  answer 
but  from  their  guns,  commanding  the  messenger  to  keep 
off  at  his  peril.  They  had  raised  some  works  about  the 
town,  and  having  by  their  intelligence  learnt  that  we 
had  no  artillery,  and  were  only  a  flying  party  (so  they 
called  us),  they  contemned  the  summons,  and  showed 
themselves  upon  their  ramparts,  ready  for  us.  The 
prince  was  resolved  to  humble  them,  if  possible,  and 
takes  up  his  quarters  close  to  the  town.  In  the  even- 
ing he  orders  me  to  advance  with  one  regiment  of 
dragoons  and  my  horse,  to  bring  them  ofF,  if  occasion 
was,  and  to  post  myself  as  near  as  possible  I  could  to 
the  lines,  yet  so  as  not  to  be  discovered ;  and  at  the 
same  time,  having  concluded  what  part  of  the  works 
to  fall  upon,  he  draws  up  his  men  on  two  other  sides, 
as  if  he  would  storm  them  there ;  and,  on  a  signal,  I 
was  to  begin  the  real  assault  on  my  side  with  my 
dragoons. 

I  had  got  so   near  the  town  with  my  dragoons, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     215 

making  them  creep  upon  their  bellies  a  great  way,  that 
we  could  hear  the  soldiers  talk  on  the  walls,  when  the 
prince,  believing  one  regiment  would  be  too  few,  sends 
me  word  that  Jie  had  ordered  a  regiment  of  foot  to 
help,  and  that  I  should  not  discover  myself  till  they 
were  come  up  to  me.  This  broke  our  measures,  for 
the  march  of  this  regiment  was  discovered  by  the 
enemy,  and  they  took  the  alarm.  Upon  this  I  sent 
to  the  prince,  to  desire  he  would  put  off  the  storm  for 
that  night,  and  I  would  answer  for  it  the  next  day ; 
but  the  prince  was  impatient,  and  sent  orders  we  should 
fall  on  as  soon  as  the  foot  came  up  to  us.  The  foot 
marched  out  of  the  way,  missed  us,  and  fell  in  with  a 
road  that  leads  to  another  part  of  the  town  ;  and  being 
not  able  to  find  us,  make  an  attack  upon  the  town 
themselves ;  but  the  defendants,  being  ready  for  them, 
received  them  very  warmly,  and  beat  them  off  with 
great  loss. 

I  was  at  a  loss  now  what  to  do ;  for  hearing  the 
guns,  and  by  the  noise  knowing  it  was  an  assault 
upon  the  town,  I  was  very  uneasy  to  have  my  share  in 
it;  but  as  I  had  learnt  under  the  King  of  Sweden 
punctually  to  adhere  to  the  execution  of  orders,  and  my 
orders  being  to  lie  still  till  the  foot  came  up  with  me, 
I  would  not  stir  if  I  had  been  sure  to  have  done  never 
so  much  service ;  but,  however,  to  satisfy  myself,  I 
sent  to  the  prince  to  let  him  know  that  I  continued  in 
the  same  place  expecting  the  foot,  and  none  being  yet 
come,  I  desired  farther  orders.  The  prince  was  a  little 
amazed  at  this,  and  finding  there  must  be  some  mistake, 
came  galloping  away  in  the  dark  to  the  place  and  drew 
off  the  men,  which  was  no  hard  matter,  for  they  were 
willing  enough  to  give  it  over. 

As  for  me,  the  prince  ordered  me  to  come  off  so 
privately  as  not  to  be  discovered,  if  possible,  which  I 
effectually  did  ;  and  so  we  were  baulked  for  that  night. 


216     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  next  day  the  prince  fell  on  upon  another  quarter 
with  three  regiments  of  foot,  but  was  beaten  off  with 
loss,  and  the  like  a  third  time.  At  last  the  prince 
resolved  to  carry  it,  doubled  his  numbers,  and,  renew- 
ing the  attack  with  fresh  men,  the  foot  entered  the  town 
over  their  works,  killing  in  the  first  heat  of  the  action 
all  that  came  in  their  way  ;  some  of  the  foot  at  the  same 
time  letting  in  the  horse,  and  so  the  town  was  entirely 
won.  There  was  about  600  of  the  enemy  killed,  and 
we  lost  above  400  in  all,  which  was  owing  to  the  foolish 
mistakes  we  made.  Our  men  got  some  plunder  here, 
which  the  Parliament  made  a  great  noise  about ;  but  it 
was  their  due,  and  they  bought  it  dear  enough. 

Liverpool  did  not  cost  us  so  much,  nor  did  we  get 
so  much  by  it,  the  people  having  sent  their  women  and 
children  and  best  goods  on  board  the  ships  in  the  road  ; 
and  as  we  had  no  boats  to  board  them  with,  we  could 
not  get  at  them.  Here,  as  at  Bolton,  the  town  and 
fort  was  taken  by  storm,  and  the  garrison  were  many 
of  them  cut  in  pieces,  which,  by  the  way,  was  their 
own  faults. 

Our  next  step  was  Lathom  House,  which  the 
Countess  of  Derby  had  gallantly  defended  above  eighteen 
weeks  against  the  Parliament  forces ;  and  this  lady 
not  only  encouraged  her  men  by  her  cheerful  and  noble 
maintenance  of  them,  but  by  examples  of  her  own  un- 
daunted spirit,  exposing  herself  upon  the  walls  in  the 
midst  of  the  enemy's  shot,  would  be  with  her  men  in 
the  greatest  dangers ;  and  she  well  deserved  our  care 
of  her  person,  for  the  enemy  were  prepared  to  use  her 
very  rudely  if  she  fell  into  their  hands. 

Upon  our  approach  the  enemy  drew  off,  and  the 
prince  not  only  effectually  relieved  this  vigorous  lady, 
but  left  her  a  good  quantity  of  all  sorts  of  ammunition, 
three  great  guns,  500  arms,  and  200  men,  commanded 
by  a  major,  as  her  extraordinary  guard. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     217 

Here  the  way  being  now  opened,  and  our  success 
answering  our  expectation,  several  bodies  of  foot  came 
in  to  us  from  Westmoreland  and  from  Cumberland ; 
and  here  it  was  that  the  prince  found  means  to  surprise 
the  town  of  Newcastle-upon-Tyne,  which  was  re- 
covered for  the  king  by  the  management  of  the  mayor 
of  the  town,  and  some  loyal  gentlemen  of  the  county, 
and  a  garrison  placed  there  again  for  the  king. 

But  our  main  design  being  the  relief  of  York,  the 
prince  advanced  that  way  apace,  his  army  still  increas- 
ing; and  being  joined  by  the  Lord  Goring  from  Rich- 
mondshire  with  4000  horse,  which  were  the  same  the 
Earl  of  Newcastle  had  sent  away  when  he  threw  him- 
self into  York  with  the  infantry,  we  were  now  1 8,000 
effective  men,  whereof  10,000  horse  and  dragoons;  so 
the  prince,  full  of  hopes,  and  his  men  in  good  heart, 
boldly  marched  directly  for  York. 

The  Scots,  as  much  surprised  at  the  taking  of  New- 
castle as  at  the  coming  of  their  enemy,  began  to  inquire 
which  way  they  should  get  home,  if  they  should  be 
beaten ;  and  calling  a  council  of  war,  they  all  agreed  to 
raise  the  siege.  The  prince,  who  drew  with  him  a 
great  train  of  carriages  charged  with  provision  and  am- 
munition for  the  relief  of  the  city,  like  a  wary  general, 
kept  at  a  distance  from  the  enemy,  and  fetching  a  great 
compass  about,  brings  all  safe  into  the  city,  and  enters 
into  York  himself  with  all  his  army. 

No  action  of  this  whole  war  had  gained  the  prince  so 
much  honour,  or  the  king's  affairs  so  much  advantage, 
as  this,  had  the  prince  but  had  the  power  to  have  re- 
strained his  courage  after  this,  and  checked  his  fatal 
eagerness  for  fighting.  Here  was  a  siege  raised,  the 
reputation  of  the  enemy  justly  stirred,  a  city  relieved, 
and  furnished  with  all  things  necessary  in  the  face  of 
an  army  superior  in  number  by  near  10,000  men,  and 
commanded  by  a  triumvirate  of  Generals  Leven,  Fair- 


218     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

fax,  and  Manchester.  Had  the  prince  but  remembered 
the  proceeding  of  the  great  Duke  of  Parma  at  the  relief 
of  Paris,  he  would  have  seen  the  relieving  the  city  was 
his  business ;  'twas  the  enemy's  business  to  fight  if 
possible,  'twas  his  to  avoid  it ;  for,  having  delivered  the 
city,  and  put  the  disgrace  of  raising  the  siege  upon  the 
enemy,  he  had  nothing  further  to  do  but  to  have  waited 
till  he  had  seen  what  course  the  enemy  would  take,  and 
taken  his  further  measures  from  their  motion. 

But  the  prince,  a  continual  friend  to  precipitant  coun- 
sels, would  hear  no  advice.  I  entreated  him  not  to  put 
it  to  the  hazard  ;  I  told  him  that  he  ought  to  consider 
if  he  lost  the  day  he  lost  the  kingdom,  and  took  the 
crown  off  from  the  king's  head.  I  put  him  in  mind 
that  it  was  impossible  those  three  generals  should  con- 
tinue long  together ;  and  that  if  they  did,  they  would 
not  agree  long  in  their  counsels,  which  would  be  as 
well  for  us  as  their  separating.  '  Twas  plain  Manchester 
and  Cromwell  must  return  to  the  associated  counties, 
who  would  not  suffer  them  to  stay,  for  fear  the  king 
should  attempt  them.  That  he  could  subsist  well 
enough,  having  York  city  and  river  at  his  back ;  but 
the  Scots  would  eat  up  the  country,  make  themselves 
odious,  and  dwindle  away  to  nothing,  if  he  would  but 
hold  them  at  bay  a  little.  Other  general  officers  were 
of  the  same  mind  ;  but  all  I  could  say,  or  they  either, 
to  a  man  deaf  to  anything  but  his  own  courage,  signified 
nothing.  He  would  draw  out  and  fight ;  there  was  no 
persuading  him  to  the  contrary,  unless  a  man  would  run 
the  risk  of  being  upbraided  with  being  a  coward,  and 
afraid  of  the  work.  The  enemy's  army  lay  on  a  large 
common,  called  Marston  Moor,  doubtful  what  to  do. 
Some  were  for  fighting  the  prince,  the  Scots  were 
against  it,  being  uneasy  at  having  the  garrison  of 
Newcastle  at  their  backs ;  but  the  prince  brought  their 
councils  of  war  to  a  result,  for  he  let  them  know  they 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     219 

must  fight  him,  whether  they  would  or  no ;  for  the 
prince  being,  as  before,  18,000  men,  and  the  Earl  of 
Newcastle  having  joined  him  with  8000  foot  out  of 
the  city,  were  marched  in  quest  of  the  enemy,  had 
entered  the  moor  in  view  of  their  army,  and  began 
to  draw  up  in  order  of  battle ;  but  the  night  coming 
on,  the  armies  only  viewed  each  other  at  a  distance  for 
that  time.  We  lay  all  night  upon  our  arms,  and  with 
the  first  of  the  day  were  in  order  of  battle ;  the  enemy 
was  getting  ready,  but  part  of  Manchester's  men  were 
not  in  the  field,  but  lay  about  three  miles  off,  and  made 
a  hasty  march  to  come  up. 

The  prince  his  army  was  exceedingly  well  managed ; 
he  himself  commanded  the  left  wing,  the  Earl  of  New- 
castle the  right  wing;  and  the  Lord  Goring,  as  general 
of  the  foot,  assisted  by  Major- General  Porter  and  Sir 
Charles  Lucas,  led  tfie  main  battle.  I  had  prevailed 
with  the  prince,  according  to  the  method  of  the  King 
of  Sweden,  to  place  some  small  bodies  of  musketeers 
in  the  intervals  of  his  horse,  in  the  left  wing,  but  could 
not  prevail  upon  the  Earl  of  Newcastle  to  do  it  in  the 
right,  which  he  afterwards  repented.  In  this  posture 
we  stood  facing  the  enemy,  expecting  they  would  ad- 
vance to  us,  which  at  last  they  did ;  and  the  prince 
began  the  day  by  saluting  them  with  his  artillery,  which, 
being  placed  very  well,  galled  them  terribly  for  a  quar- 
ter of  an  hour.  They  could  not  shift  their  front,  so 
they  advanced  the  hastier  to  get  within  our  great  guns, 
and  consequently  out  of  their  danger,  which  brought 
the  fight  the  sooner  on. 

The  enemy's  army  was  thus  ordered :  Sir  Thomas 
Fairfax  had  the  right  wing,  in  which  was  the  Scots 
horse,  and  the  horse  of  his  own  and  his  father's  army ; 
Cromwell  led  the  left  wing,  with  his  own  and  the  Earl 
of  Manchester's  horse,  and  the  three  generals,  Leslie, 
old  Fairfax,  and  Manchester,  led  the  main  battle. 


22O     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  prince,  with  our  left  wing,  fell  on  first,  and, 
with  his  usual  fury,  broke  like  a  clap  of  thunder  into 
the  right  wing  of  the  Scots  horse,  led  by  Sir  Thomas 
Fairfax,  and,  as  nothing  could  stand  in  his  way,  he 
broke  through  and  through  them,  and  entirely  routed 
them,  pursuing  them  quite  out  of  the  field.  Sir  Thomas 
Fairfax,  with  a  regiment  of  lances,  and  about  500 
of  his  own  horse,  made  good  the  ground  for  some 
time ;  but  our  musketeers,  which,  as  I  said,  were  placed 
among  our  horse,  were  such  an  unlooked-for  sort  of  an 
article  in  a  fight  among  the  horse,  that  those  lances, 
which  otherwise  were  brave  fellows,  were  mowed  down 
with  their  shot,  and  all  was  put  into  confusion.  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax  was  wounded  in  the  face,  his  brother 
killed,  and  a  great  slaughter  was  made  of  the  Scots,  to 
whom  I  confess  we  showed  no  favour  at  all. 

While  this  was  doing  on  our  left,  the  Lord  Goring 
with  the  main  battle  charged  the  enemy's  foot ;  and 
particularly  one  brigade  commanded  by  Major-General 
Porter,  being  mostly  pikemen,  not  regarding  the  fire  of 
the  enemy,  charged  with  that  fury  in  a  close  body  of 
pikes,  that  they  overturned  all  that  came  in  their  way, 
and  breaking  into  the  middle  of  the  enemy's  foot,  filled 
all  with  terror  and  confusion,  insomuch  that  the  three 
generals,  thinking  all  had  been  lost,  fled,  and  quitted 
the  field. 

But  matters  went  not  so  well  with  that  always  un- 
fortunate gentleman  the  Earl  of  Newcastle  and  our 
right  wing  of  horse;  for  Cromwell  charged  the  Earl 
of  Newcastle  with  a  powerful  body  of  horse.  And 
though  the  earl,  and  those  about  him,  did  what  men 
could  do,  and  behaved  themselves  with  all  possible 
gallantry,  yet  there  was  no  withstanding  Cromwell's 
horse,  but,  like  Prince  Rupert,  they  bore  down  all 
before  them.  And  now  the  victory  was  wrung  out 
of  our  hands  by  our  own  gross  miscarriage;  for  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     221 

prince,  as  'twas  his  custom,  too  eager  in  the  chase  of 
the  enemy,  was  gone,  and  could  not  be  heard  of.  The 
foot  in  the  centre,  the  right  wing  of  the  horse  being 
routed  by  Cromwell,  was  left,  and  without  the  guard 
of  his  horse ;  Cromwell  having  routed  the  Earl  of 
Newcastle,  and  beaten  him  quite  out  of  the  field,  and 
Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  rallying  his  dispersed  troops,  they 
fall  all  together  upon  the  foot.  General  Lord  Goring, 
like  himself,  fought  like  a  lion,  but,  forsaken  of  his 
horse,  was  hemmed  in  on  all  sides,  and  overthrown ; 
and  an  hour  after  this,  the  prince  returning,  too  late  to 
recover  his  friends,  was  obliged  with  the  rest  to  quit 
the  field  to  conquerors. 

This  was  a  fatal  day  to  the  king's  affairs,  and  the 
risk  too  much  for  any  man  in  his  wits  to  run ;  we  lost 
4000  men  on  the  spot,  3000  prisoners,  among  whom 
was  Sir  Charles  Lucas,  Major-General  Porter,  Major- 
General  Tilyard,  and  about  170  gentlemen  of  quality. 
We  lost  all  our  baggage,  twenty-five  pieces  of  cannon, 
300  carriages,  150  barrels  of  powder,  and  10,000 
arms.  The  prince  got  into  York  with  the  Earl  of 
Newcastle,  and  a  great  many  gentlemen  ;  and  7000  or 
8000  of  the  men,  as  well  horse  as  foot. 

I  had  but  very  coarse  treatment  in  this  fight ;  for 
returning  with  the  prince  from  the  pursuit  of  the  right 
wing,  and  finding  all  lost,  I  halted  with  some  other 
officers,  to  consider  what  to  do.  At  first  we  were  for 
making  our  retreat  in  a  body,  and  might  have  done  so 
well  enough,  if  we  had  known  what  had  happened, 
before  we  saw  ourselves  in  the  middle  of  the  enemy ; 
for  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax,  who  had  got  together  his 
scattered  troops,  and  joined  by  some  of  the  left  wing, 
knowing  who  we  were,  charged  us  with  great  fury. 
'Twas  not  a  time  to  think  of  anything  but  getting 
away,  or  dying  upon  the  spot ;  the  prince  kept  on  in 
the  front,  and  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  by  this  charge  cut 


222     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

off  about  three  regiments  of  us  from  our  body ;  but 
bending  his  main  strength  at  the  prince,  left  us,  as  it 
were,  behind  him,  in  the  middle  of  the  field  of  battle. 
We  took  this  for  the  only  opportunity  we  could  have 
to  get  off,  and  joining  together,  we  made  across  the 
place  of  battle  in  as  good  order  as  we  could,  with  our 
carabines  presented.  In  this  posture  we  passed  by 
several  bodies  of  the  enemy's  foot,  who  stood  with  their 
pikes  charged  to  keep  us  off;  but  they  had  no  occasion, 
for  we  had  no  design  to  meddle  with  them,  but  to  get 
from  them. 

Thus  we  made  a  swift  march,  and  thought  ourselves 
pretty  secure  ;  but  our  work  was  not  done  yet,  for  on  a 
sudden  we  saw  ourselves  under  a  necessity  of  fighting 
our  way  through  a  great  body  of  Manchester's  horse, 
who  came  galloping  upon  us  over  the  moor.  They 
had,  as  we  suppose,  been  pursuing  some  of  our  broken 
troops  which  were  fled  before,  and  seeing  us,  they  gave 
us  a  home  charge.  We  received  them  as  well  as  we 
could,  but  pushed  to  get  through  them,  which  at  last  we 
did  with  a  considerable  loss  to  them.  However,  we 
lost  so  many  men,  either  killed  or  separated  from  us  (for 
all  could  not  follow  the  same  way),  that  of  our  three 
regiments  we  could  not  be  above  400  horse  together  when 
we  got  quite  clear,  and  these  were  mixed  men,  some  of 
one  troop  and  regiment,  some  of  another.  Not  that  I 
believe  many  of  us  were  killed  in  the  last  attack,  for 
we  had  plainly  the  better  of  the  enemy,  but  our  design 
being  to  get  off,  some  shifted  for  themselves  one  way 
and  some  another,  in  the  best  manner  they  could,  and 
as  their  several  fortunes  guided  them.  Four  hundred 
more  of  this  body,  as  I  afterwards  understood,  having 
broke  through  the  enemy's  body  another  way,  kept 
together,  and  got  into  Pontefract  Castle,  and  300  more 
made  northward  and  to  Skipton,  where  the  prince 
afterwards  fetched  them  off. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     223 

These  few  of  us  that  were  left  together,  with  whom 
I  was,  being  now  pretty  clear  of  pursuit,  halted,  and 
began  to  inquire  who  and  who  we  were,  and  what  we 
should  do;  and  on  a  short  debate,  I  proposed  we  should 
make  to  the  first  garrison  of  the  king's  that  we  could 
recover,  and  that  we  should  keep  together,  lest  the 
country  people  should  insult  us  upon  the  roads.  With 
this  resolution  we  pushed  on  westward  for  Lancashire, 
but  our  misfortunes  were  not  yet  at  an  end.  We 
travelled  very  hard,  and  got  to  a  village  upon  the  river 
Wharfe,  near  Wetherby.  At  Wetherby  there  was  a 
bridge,  but  we  understood  that  a  party  from  Leeds  had 
secured  the  town  and  the  post,  in  order  to  stop  the 
flying  Cavaliers,  and  that  'twould  be  very  hard  to  get 
through  there,  though,  as  we  understood  afterwards, 
there  were  no  soldiers  there  but  a  guard  of  the  townsmen. 
In  this  pickle  we  consulted  what  course  to  take.  To 
stay  where  we  were  till  morning,  we  all  concluded, 
would  not  be  safe.  Some  advised  to  take  the  stream 
with  our  horses,  but  the  river,  which  is  deep,  and  the 
current  strong,  seemed  to  bid  us  have  a  care  what  we 
did  of  that  kind,  especially  in  the  night.  We  resolved 
therefore  to  refresh  ourselves  and  our  horses,  which 
indeed  is  more  than  we  did,  and  go  on  till  we  might 
come  to  a  ford  or  bridge,  where  we  might  get  over. 
Some  guides  we  had,  but  they  either  were  foolish  or 
false,  for  after  we  had  rode  eight  or  nine  miles,  they 
plunged  us  into  a  river  at  a  place  they  called  a  ford,  but 
'twas  a  very  ill  one,  for  most  of  our  horses  swam, 
and  seven  or  eight  were  lost,  but  we  saved  the  men. 
However,  we  got  all  over. 

We  made  bold  with  our  first  convenience  to  trespass 
upon  the  country  for  a  few  horses,  where  we  could 
find  them,  to  remount  our  men  whose  horses  were 
drowned,  and  continued  our  march.  But  being  obliged 
to  refresh  ourselves  at  a  small  village  on  the  edge  of 


224     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Bramham  Moor,  we  found  the  country  alarmed  by  our 
taking  some  horses,  and  we  were  no  sooner  got  on 
horseback  in  the  morning,  and  entering  on  the  moor, 
but  we  understood  we  were  pursued  by  some  troops  of 
horse.  There  was  no  remedy  but  we  must  pass  this 
moor ;  and  though  our  horses  were  exceedingly  tired, 
yet  we  pressed  on  upon  a  round  trot,  and  recovered  an 
enclosed  country  on  the  other  side,  where  we  halted. 
And  here,  necessity  putting  us  upon  it,  we  were  obliged 
to  look  out  for  more  horses,  for  several  of  our  men  were 
dismounted,  and  others'  horses  disabled  by  carrying 
double,  those  who  lost  their  horses  getting  up  behind 
them.  But  we  were  supplied  by  our  enemies  against 
their  will. 

The  enemy  followed  us  over  the  moor,  and  we 
having  a  woody  enclosed  country  about  us,  where  we 
were,  I  observed  by  their  moving,  they  had  lost  sight 
of  us  ;  upon  which  I  proposed  concealing  ourselves  till 
we  might  judge  of  their  numbers.  We  did  so,  and 
lying  close  in  a  wood,  they  passed  hastily  by  us,  with- 
out skirting  or  searching  the  wood,  which  was  what 
on  another  occasion  they  would  not  have  done.  I 
found  they  were  not  above  1 50  horse,  and  considering, 
that  to  let  them  go  before  us,  would  be  to  alarm  the 
country,  and  stop  our  design,  I  thought,  since  we 
might  be  able  to  deal  with  them,  we  should  not  meet 
with  a  better  place  for  it,  and  told  the  rest  of  our 
officers  my  mind,  which  all  our  party  presently  (for 
we  had  not  time  for  a  long  debate)  agreed  to. 

Immediately  upon  this  I  caused  two  men  to  fire 
their  pistols  in  the  wood,  at  two  different  places,  as 
far  asunder  as  I  could.  This  I  did  to  give  them  an 
alarm,  and  amuse  them ;  for  being  in  the  lane,  they 
would  otherwise  have  got  through  before  we  had  been 
ready,  and  I  resolved  to  engage  them  there,  as  soon 
as  'twas  possible.  After  this  alarm,  we  rushed  out  of 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     225 

the  wood,  with  about  a  hundred  horse,  and  charged 
them  on  the  flank  in  a  broad  lane,  the  wood  being  on 
their  right.  Our  passage  into  the  lane  being  narrow, 
gave  us  some  difficulty  in  our  getting  out ;  but  the 
surprise  of  the  charge  did  our  work  ;  for  the  enemy, 
thinking  we  had  been  a  mile  or  two  before,  had  not 
the  least  thoughts  of  this  onset,  till  they  heard  us  in 
the  wood,  and  then  they  who  were  before  could  not 
come  back.  We  broke  into  the  lane  just  in  the  middle 
of  them,  and  by  that  means  divided  them ;  and  facing 
to  the  left,  charged  the  rear.  First  our  dismounted 
men,  which  were  near  fifty,  lined  the  edge  of  the  wood, 
and  fired  with  their  carabines  upon  those  which  were 
before,  so  warmly,  that  they  put  them  into  a  great  dis- 
order. Meanwhile  fifty  more  of  our  horse  from  the 
farther  part  of  the  wood  showed  themselves  in  the  lane 
upon  their  front.  This  put  them  of  the  foremost  party 
into  a  great  perplexity,  and  they  began  to  face  about, 
to  fall  upon  us  who  were  engaged  in  the  rear.  But 
their  facing  about  in  a  lane  where  there  was  no  room 
to  wheel,  as  one  who  understands  the  manner  of 
wheeling  a  troop  of  horse  must  imagine,  put  them  into 
a  great  disorder.  Our  party  in  the  head  of  the  lane 
taking  the  advantage  of  this  mistake  of  the  enemy, 
charged  in  upon  them,  and  routed  them  entirely. 

Some  found  means  to  break  into  the  enclosures  on 
the  other  side  of  the  lane,  and  get  away.  About  thirty 
were  killed,  and  about  twenty-five  made  prisoners,  and 
forty  very  good  horses  were  taken  ;  all  this  while  not 
a  man  of  ours  was  lost,  and  not  above  seven  or  eight 
wounded.  Those  in  the  rear  behaved  themselves  better, 
for  they  stood  our  charge  with  a  great  deal  of  resolu- 
tion, and  all  we  could  do  could  not  break  them  ;  but 
at  last  our  men  who  had  fired  on  foot  through  the 
hedges  at  the  other  party,  coming  to  do  the  like  here, 
there  was  no  standing  it  any  longer.  The  rear  of  them 


226     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

faced  about  and  retreated  out  of  the  lane,  and  drew  up 
in  the  open  field  to  receive  and  rally  their  fellows.  We 
killed  about  seventeen  of  them,  and  followed  them  to 
the  end  of  the  lane,  but  had  no  mind  to  have  any  more 
fighting  than  needs  must,  our  condition  at  that  time  not 
making  it  proper,  the  towns  round  us  being  all  in  the 
enemy's  hands,  and  the  country  but  indifferently  pleased 
with  us ;  however,  we  stood  facing  them  till  they 
thought  fit  to  march  away.  Thus  we  were  supplied 
with  horses  enough  to  remount  our  men,  and  pursued 
our  first  design  of  getting  into  Lancashire.  As  for  our 
prisoners,  we  let  them  off  on  foot. 

But  the  country  being  by  this  time  alarmed,  and 
the  rout  of  our  army  everywhere  known,  we  foresaw 
abundance  of  difficulties  before  us  ;  we  were  not  strong 
enough  to  venture  into  any  great  towns,  and  we  were 
too  many  to  be  concealed  in  small  ones.  Upon  this 
we  resolved  to  halt  in  a  great  wood  about  three  miles 
beyond  the  place,  where  we  had  the  last  skirmish,  and 
sent  our  scouts  to  discover  the  country,  and  learn  what 
they  could,  either  of  the  enemy  or  of  our  friends. 

Anybody  may  suppose  we  had  but  indifferent  quar- 
ters here,  either  for  ourselves  or  for  our  horses ;  but, 
however,  we  made  shift  to  lie  here  two  days  and  one 
night.  In  the  interim  I  took  upon  me,  with  two  more, 
to  go  to  Leeds  to  learn  some  news  ;  we  were  disguised 
like  country  ploughmen  ;  the  clothes  we  got  at  a  far- 
mer's house,  which  for  that  particular  occasion  we 
plundered ;  and  I  cannot  say  no  blood  was  shed  in 
a  manner  too  rash,  and  which  I  could  not  have  done 
at  another  time  ;  but  our  case  was  desperate,  and  the 
people  too  surly,  and  shot  at  us  out  of  the  window, 
wounded  one  man  and  shot  a  horse,  which  we  counted 
as  great  a  loss  to  us  as  a  man,  for  our  safety  depended 
upon  our  horses.  Here  we  got  clothes  of  all  sorts, 
enough  for  both  sexes,  and  thus  dressing  myself  up  au 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     227 

pay  son,  with  a  white  cap  on  my  head,  and  a  fork  on 
my  shoulder,  and  one  of  my  comrades  in  the  farmer's 
wife's  russet  gown  and  petticoat,  like  a  woman,  the 
other  with  an  old  crutch  like  a  lame  man,  and  all 
mounted  on  such  horses  as  we  had  taken  the  day  before 
from  the  country,  away  we  go  to  Leeds  by  three 
several  ways,  and  agreed  to  meet  upon  the  bridge.  My 
pretended  country  woman  acted  her  part  to  the  life, 
though  the  party  was  a  gentleman  of  good  quality,  of 
the  Earl  of  Worcester's  family ;  and  the  cripple  did 
as  well  as  he ;  but  I  thought  myself  very  awkward  in 
my  dress,  which  made  me  very  shy,  especially  among 
the  soldiers.  We  passed  their  sentinels  and  guards  at 
Leeds  unobserved,  and  put  up  our  horses  at  seyeral 
houses  in  the  town,  from  whence  we  went  up  and  down 
to  make  our  remarks.  My  cripple  was  the  fittest  to 
go  among  the  soldiers,  because  there  was  less  danger 
of  being  pressed.  There  he  informed  himself  of  the 
matters  of  war,  particularly  that  the  enemy  sat  down 
again  to  the  siege  of  York;  that  flying  parties  were  in 
pursuit  of  the  Cavaliers  ;  and  there  he  heard  that  500 
horse  of  the  Lord  Manchester's  men  had  followed 
a  party  of  Cavaliers  over  Bramham  Moor,  and  that 
entering  a  lane,  the  Cavaliers,  who  were  1000  strong, 
fell  upon  them,  and  killed  them  all  but  about  fifty. 
This,  though  it  was  a  lie,  was  very  pleasant  to  us  to 
hear,  knowing  it  was  our  party,  because  of  the  other 
part  of  the  story,  which  was  thus  :  That  the  Cavaliers 
had  taken  possession  of  such  a  wood,  where  they  rallied 
all  the  troops  of  their  flying  army  ;  that  they  had  plun- 
dered the  country  as  they  came,  taking  all  the  horses 
they  could  get ;  that  they  had  plundered  Goodman 
Thomson's  house,  which  was  the  farmer  I  mentioned, 
and  killed  man,  woman,  and  child  ;  and  that  they  were 
about  2000  strong. 

My  other  friend  in  woman's  clothes  got  among  the 


228     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

good  wives  at  an  inn,  where  she  set  up  her  horse,  and 
there  she  heard  the  same  sad  and  dreadful  tidings ; 
and  that  this  party  was  so  strong,  none  of  the  neigh- 
bouring garrisons  durst  stir  out;  but  that  they  had 
sent  expresses  to  York,  for  a  party  of  horse  to  come 
to  their  assistance. 

I  walked  up  and  down  the  town,  but  fancied  myself 
so  ill  disguised,  and  so  easy  to  be  known,  that  I  cared 
not  to  talk  with  anybody.  We  met  at  the  bridge 
exactly  at  our  time,  and  compared  our  intelligence, 
found  it  answered  our  end  of  coming,  and  that  we  had 
nothing  to  do  but  to  get  back  to  our  men ;  but  my 
cripple  told  me,  he  would  not  stir  till  he  bought  some 
victuals ;  so  away  he  hops  with  his  crutch,  and  buys 
four  or  five  great  pieces  of  bacon,  as  many  of  hung 
beef,  and  two  or  three  loaves  ;  and  borrowing  a  sack  at 
the  inn  (which  I  suppose  he  never  restored),  he  loads 
his  horse,  and  getting  a  large  leather  bottle,  he  filled 
that  of  aqua-vits  instead  of  small  beer  ;  my  woman 
comrade  did  the  like.  I  was  uneasy  in  my  mind,  and 
took  no  care  but  to  get  out  of  the  town  ;  however,  we 
all  came  off  well  enough  ;  but  'twas  well  for  me 
that  I  had  no  provisions  with  me,  as  you  will  hear 
presently. 

We  came,  as  I  said,  into  the  town  by  several  ways, 
and  so  we  went  out ;  but  about  three  miles  from  the 
town  we  met  again  exactly  where  we  had  agreed.  I 
being  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  rest,  I  meets 
three  country  fellows  on  horseback  ;  one  had  a  long 
pole  on  his  shoulder,  another  a  fork,  the  third  no 
weapon  at  all,  that  I  saw.  I  gave  them  the  road  very 
orderly,  being  habited  like  one  of  their  brethren  ;  but 
one  of  them  stopping  short  at  me,  and  looking  earnestly, 
calls  out,  "Hark  thee,  friend,"  says  he,  in  a  broad 
north-country  tone,  "  whar  hast  thou  thilk  horse  ?  " 
I  must  confess  I  was  in  the  utmost  confusion  at  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     229 

question,  neither  being  able  to  answer  the  question,  nor 
to  speak  in  his  tone ;  so  I  made  as  if  I  did  not  hear 
him,  and  went  on.  "  Na,  but  ye's  not  gang  soa,"  says 
the  boor,  and  comes  up  to  me,  and  takes  hold  of  the 
horse's  bridle  to  stop  me ;  at  which,  vexed  at  heart 
that  I  could  not  tell  how  to  talk  to  him,  I  reached 
him  a  great  knock  on  the  pate  with  my  fork,  and 
fetched  him  off  of  his  horse,  and  then  began  to  mend 
my  pace.  The  other  clowns,  though  it  seems  they 
knew  not  what  the  fellow  wanted,  pursued  me,  and 
finding  they  had  better  heels  than  I,  I  saw  there  was 
no  remedy  but  to  make  use  of  my  hands,  and  faced 
about. 

The  first  that  came  up  with  me  was  he  that  had  no 
weapons,  so  I  thought  I  might  parley  with  him,  and 
speaking  as  country-like  as  I  could,  I  asked  him  what 
he  wanted  ?  "  Thou'st  knaw  that  soon,"  says  York- 
shire, "  and  ise  but  come  at  thee."  "  Then  keep  awa', 
man,"  said  I,  "or  ise  brain  thee."  By  this  time  the 
third  man  came  up  and  the  parley  ended ;  for  he  gave 
me  no  words,  but  laid  at  me  with  his  long  pole,  and 
that  with  such  fury,  that  I  began  to  be  doubtful  of  him. 
I  was  loth  to  shoot  the  fellow,  though  I  had  pistols 
under  my  grey  frock,  as  well  for  that  the  noise  of  a 
pistol  might  bring  more  people  in,  the  village  being  on 
our  rear,  and  also  because  I  could  not  imagine  what  the 
fellow  meant,  or  would  have.  But  at  last,  finding  he 
would  be  too  many  for  me  with  that  long  weapon,  and 
a  hardy  strong  fellow,  I  threw  myself  off  my  horse,  and 
running  in  with  him,  stabbed  my  fork  into  his  horse. 
The  horse  being  wounded,  staggered  awhile,  and  then 
fell  down,  and  the  booby  had  not  the  sense  to  get  down 
in  time,  but  fell  with  him.  Upon  which,  giving  him 
a  knock  or  two  with  my  fork,  I  secured  him.  The 
other,  by  this  time,  had  furnished  himself  with  a  great 
stick  out  of  a  hedge,  and  before  I  was  disengaged  from 


230     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

the  last  fellow,  gave  me  two  such  blows,  that  if  the  last 
had  not  missed  my  head  and  hit  me  on  the  shoulder,  I 
had  ended  the  fight  and  my  life  together.  'Twas  time 
to  look  about  me  now,  for  this  was  a  madman.  I 
defended  myself  with  my  fork,  but  'twould  not  do. 
At  last,  in  short,  I  was  forced  to  pistol  him  and  get  on 
horseback  again,  and  with  all  the  speed  I  could  make, 
get  away  to  the  wood  to  our  men. 

If  my  two  fellow-spies  had  not  been  behind,  I  had 
never  known  what  was  the  meaning  of  this  quarrel  of 
the  three  countrymen,  but  my  cripple  had  all  the  par- 
ticulars. For  he  being  behind  us,  as  I  have  already 
observed,  when  he  came  up  to  the  first  fellow  who 
began  the  fray,  he  found  him  beginning  to  come  to 
himself.  So  he  gets  off,  and  pretends  to  help  him,  and 
sets  him  up  upon  his  breech,  and  being  a  very  merry 
fellow,  talked  to  him  :  "  Well,  and  what's  the  matter 
now  ?  "  says  he  to  him.  "  Ah,  wae's  me,"  says  the 
fellow,  "I  is  killed."  "Not  quite,  mon,"  says  the 
cripple.  "  Oh  that's  a  fau  thief,"  says  he,  and  thus 
they  parleyed.  My  cripple  got  him  on's  feet,  and  gave 
him  a  dram  of  his  aqua-vitae  bottle,  and  made  much  of 
him,  in  order  to  know  what  was  the  occasion  of  the 
quarrel.  Our  disguised  woman  pitied  the  fellow  too, 
and  together  they  set  him  up  again  upon  his  horse,  and 
then  he  told  him  that  that  fellow  was  got  upon  one  of 
his  brother's  horses  who  lived  at  Wetherby.  They 
said  the  Cavaliers  stole  him,  but  'twas  like  such  rogues. 
No  mischief  could  be  done  in  the  country,  but  'twas 
the  poor  Cavaliers  must  bear  the  blame,  and  the  like, 
and  thus  they  jogged  on  till  they  came  to  the  place 
where  the  other  two  lay.  The  first  fellow  they 
assisted  as  they  had  done  t'other,  and  gave  him  a 
dram  out  of  the  leather  bottle,  but  the  last  fellow  was 
past  their  care,  so  they  came  away.  For  when  they 
understood  that  'twas  my  horse  they  claimed,  they 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     231 

began  to  be  afraid  that  their  own  horses  might  be 
known  too,  and  then  they  had  been  betrayed  in  a  worse 
pickle  than  I,  and  must  have  been  forced  to  have  done 
some  mischief  or  other  to  have  got  away. 

I  had  sent  out  two  troopers  to  fetch  them  off,  if  there 
was  any  occasion  ;  but  their  stay  was  not  long,  and  the 
two  troopers  saw  them  at  a  distance  coming  towards  us, 
so  they  returned. 

I  had  enough  of  going  for  a  spy,  and  my  companions 
had  enough  of  staying  in  the  wood  ;  for  other  intelli- 
gences agreed  with  ours,  and  all  concurred  in  this,  that 
it  was  time  to  be  going ;  however,  this  use  we  made  of 
it,  that  while  the  country  thought  us  so  strong  we  were 
in  the  less  danger  of  being  attacked,  though  in  the 
more  of  being  observed ;  but  all  this  while  we  heard 
nothing  of  our  friends  till  the  next  day.  We  heard 
Prince  Rupert,  with  about  1000  horse,  was  at  Skipton, 
and  from  thence  marched  away  to  Westmoreland. 

We  concluded  now  we  had  two  or  three  days'  time 
good ;  for,  since  messengers  were  sent  to  York  for  a 
a  party  to  suppress  us,  we  must  have  at  least  two  days' 
march  of  them,  and  therefore  all  concluded  we  were  to 
make  the  best  of  our  way.  Early  in  the  morning,  there- 
fore, we  decamped  from  those  dull  quarters  ;  and  as  we 
marched  through  a  village  we  found  the  people  very 
civil  to  us,  and  the  women  cried  out,  "  God  bless  them, 
'tis  pity  the  Roundheads  should  make  such  work  with 
such  brave  men,"  and  the  like.  Finding  we  were 
among  our  friends,  we  resolved  to  halt  a  little  and 
refresh  ourselves  ;  and,  indeed,  the  people  were  very 
kind  to  us,  gave  us  victuals  and  drink,  and  took  care 
of  our  horses.  It  happened  to  be  my  lot  to  stop  at  a 
house  where  the  good  woman  took  a  great  deal  of  pains 
to  provide  for  us  ;  but  I  observed  the  good  man  walked 
about  with  a  cap  upon  his  head,  and  very  much  out  of 
order.  I  took  no  great  notice  of  it,  being  very  sleepy, 


232     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

and  having  asked  my  landlady  to  let  me  have  a  bed,  I 
lay  down  and  slept  heartily.  When  I  waked  I  found 
my  landlord  on  another  bed  groaning  very  heavily. 

When  I  came  downstairs,  I  found  my  cripple  talk- 
ing with  my  landlady  ;  he  was  now  out  of  his  disguise, 
but  we  called  him  cripple  still ;  and  the  other,  who  put 
on  the  woman's  clothes,  we  called  Goody  Thompson. 
As  soon  as  he  saw  me,  he  called  me  out,  "  Do  you 
know,"  says  he,  "the  man  of  the  house  you  are  quar- 
tered in?"  "No,  not  I,"  says  I.  "No;  so  I 
believe,  nor  they  you,"  says  he  ;  "  if  they  did,  the  good 
wife  would  not  have  made  you  a  posset,  and  fetched  a 
white  loaf  for  you."  "What  do  you  mean  ?"  says  I. 
"  Have  you  seen  the  man  ? "  says  he.  "  Seen  him," 
says  I ;  "  yes,  and  heard  him  too  ;  the  man's  sick,  and 
groans  so  heavily,"  says  I,  "  that  I  could  not  lie  upon 
the  bed  any  longer  for  him."  "  Why,  this  is  the  poor 
man,"  says  he,  "  that  you  knocked  down  with  your 
fork  yesterday,  and  I  have  had  all  the  story  out  yonder 
at  the  next  door."  I  confess  it  grieved  me  to  have 
been  forced  to  treat  one  so  roughly  who  was  one  of  our 
friends,  but  to  make  some  amends,  we  contrived  to  give 
the  poor  man  his  brother's  horse ;  and  my  cripple  told 
him  a  formal  story,  that  he  believed  the  horse  was  taken 
away  from  the  fellow  by  some  of  our  men,  and  if  he 
knew  him  again,  if  'twas  his  friend's  horse,  he  should 
have  him.  The  man  came  down  upon  the  news,  and 
I  caused  six  or  seven  horses,  which  were  taken  at  the 
same  time,  to  be  shown  him  ;  he  immediately  chose  the 
right ;  so  I  gave  him  the  horse,  and  we  pretended  a 
great  deal  of  sorrow  for  the  man's  hurt,  and  that  we 
had  not  knocked  the  fellow  on  the  head  as  well  as  took 
away  the  horse.  The  man  was  so  overjoyed  at  the 
revenge  he  thought  was  taken  on  the  fellow,  that  we 
heard  him  groan  no  more. 

We  ventured  to  stay  all  day  at  this  town  and  the  next 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     233 

night,  and  got  guides  to  lead  us  to  Blackstone  Edge,  a 
ridge  of  mountains  which  part  this  side  of  Yorkshire 
from  Lancashire.  Early  in  the  morning  we  marched, 
and  kept  our  scouts  very  carefully  out  every  way,  who 
brought  us  no  news  for  this  day.  We  kept  on  all 
night,  and  made  our  horses  do  penance  for  that  little 
rest  they  had,  and  the  next  morning  we  passed  the  hills 
and  got  into  Lancashire,  to  a  town  called  Littlebrough, 
and  from  thence  to  Rochdale,  a  little  market  town. 
And  now  we  thought  ourselves  safe  as  to  the  pursuit  of 
enemies  from  the  side  of  York.  Our  design  was  to  get 
to  Bolton,  but  all  the  county  was  full  of  the  enemy  in 
flying  parties,  and  how  to  get  to  Bolton  we  knew  not. 
At  last  we  resolved  to  send  a  messenger  to  Bolton ; 
but  he  came  back  and  told  us  he  had  with  lurking  and 
hiding  tried  all  the  ways  that  he  thought  possible,  but 
to  no  purpose,  for  he  could  not  get  into  the  town.  We 
sent  another,  and  he  never  returned,  and  some  time 
after  we  understood  he  was  taken  by  the  enemy.  At 
last  one  got  into  the  town,  but  brought  us  word  they 
were  tired  out  with  constant  alarms,  had  been  strictly 
blocked  up,  and  every  day  expected  a  siege,  and  there- 
fore advised  us  either  to  go  northward,  where  Prince 
Rupert  and  the  Lord  Goring  ranged  at  liberty,  or  to 
get  over  Warrington  Bridge,  and  so  secure  our  retreat 
to  Chester. 

This  double  direction  divided  our  opinions.  I  was 
for  getting  into  Chester,  both  to  recruit  myself  with 
horses  and  with  money,  both  which  I  wanted,  and  to 
get  refreshment,  which  we  all  wanted ;  but  the  major 
part  of  our  men  were  for  the  north.  First  they  said 
there  was  their  general,  and  'twas  their  duty  to  the  cause, 
and  the  king's  interest  obliged  us  to  go  where  we  could 
do  best  service ;  and  there  was  their  friends,  and  every 
man  might  hear  some  news  of  his  own  regiment,  for  we 
belonged  to  several  regiments.  Besides,  all  the  towns 


234     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

to  the  left  of  us  were  possessed  by  Sir  William  Brere- 
ton,  Warrington,  and  Northwich,  garrisoned  by  the 
enemy,  and  a  strong  party  at  Manchester,  so  that 
'twas  very  likely  we  should  be  beaten  and  dispersed 
before  we  could  get  to  Chester.  These  reasons,  and 
especially  the  last,  determined  us  for  the  north,  and  we 
had  resolved  to  march  the  next  morning,  when  other 
intelligence  brought  us  to  more  speedy  resolutions.  We 
kept  our  scouts  continually  abroad  to  bring  us  intelli- 
gence of  the  enemy,  whom  we  expected  on  our  backs, 
and  also  to  keep  an  eye  upon  the  country ;  for,  as  we 
lived  upon  them  something  at  large,  they  were  ready 
enough  to  do  us  any  ill  turn,  as  it  lay  in  their  power. 

The  first  messenger  that  came  to  us  was  from  our 
friends  at  Bolton,  to  inform  us  that  they  were  preparing 
at  Manchester  to  attack  us.  One  of  our  parties  had 
been  as  far  as  Stockport,  on  the  edge  of  Cheshire,  and 
was  pursued  by  a  party  of  the  enemy,  but  got  off  by  the 
help  of  the  night.  Thus,  all  things  looking  black  to 
the  south,  we  had  resolved  to  march  northward  in  the 
morning,  when  one  of  our  scouts  from  the  side  of 
Manchester  assured  us  Sir  Thomas  Middleton,  with 
some  of  the  Parliament  forces  and  the  country  troops, 
making  above  1 200  men,  were  on  their  march  to  attack 
us,  and  would  certainly  beat  up  our  quarters  that  night. 
Upon  this  advice  we  resolved  to  be  gone ;  and,  getting 
all  things  in  readiness,  we  began  to  march  about  two 
hours  before  night.  And  having  gotten  a  trusty  fellow 
for  a  guide,  a  fellow  that  we  found  was  a  friend  to  our 
side,  he  put  a  project  into  my  head  which  saved  us  all 
for  that  time ;  and  that  was,  to  give  out  in  the  village 
that  we  were  marched  back  to  Yorkshire,  resolving  to 
get  into  Pontefract  Castle ;  and  accordingly  he  leads 
us  out  of  the  town  the  same  way  we  came  in,  and, 
taking  a  boy  with  him,  he  sends  the  boy  back  just  at 
night,  and  bade  him  say  he  saw  us  go  up  the  hills  at 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     235 

Blackstone  Edge ;  and  it  happened  very  well,  for  this 
party  were  so  sure  of  us,  that  they  had  placed  400  men 
on  the  road  to  the  northward  to  intercept  our  retreat 
that  way,  and  had  left  no  way  for  us,  as  they  thought, 
to  get  away  but  back  again. 

About  ten  o'clock  at  night,  they  assaulted  our 
quarters,  but  found  we  were  gone  ;  and  being  informed 
which  way,  they  followed  upon  the  spur,  and  travelling 
all  night,  being  moonlight,  they  found  themselves  the 
next  day  about  fifteen  miles  east,  just  out  of  their  way. 
For  we  had,  by  the  help  of  our  guide,  turned  short  at 
the  foot  of  the  hills,  and  through  blind,  untrodden 
paths,  and  with  difficulty  enough,  by  noon  the  next 
day  had  reached  almost  twenty-five  miles  north,  near 
a  town  called  Clitheroe.  Here  we  halted  in  the  open 
field,  and  sent  out  our  people  to  see  how  things  were 
in  the  country.  This  part  of  the  country,  almost  un- 
passable,  and  walled  round  with  hills,  was  indifferent 
quiet,  and  we  got  some  refreshment  for  ourselves,  but 
very  little  horse-meat,  and  so  went  on.  But  we  had 
not  marched  far  before  we  found  ourselves  discovered, 
and  the  400  horse  sent  to  lie  in  wait  for  us  as  before, 
having  understood  which  way  we  went,  followed  us 
hard  ;  and  by  letters  to  some  of  their  friends  at  Preston, 
we  found  we  were  beset  again. 

Our  guide  began  now  to  be  out  of  his  knowledge, 
and  our  scouts  brought  us  word,  the  enemy's  horse 
was  posted  before  us,  and  we  knew  they  were  in  our 
rear.  In  this  exigence,  we  resolved  to  divide  our 
small  body,  and  so  amusing  them,  at  least  one  might 
get  off,  if  the  other  miscarried.  I  took  about  eighty 
horse  with  me,  among  which  were  all  that  I  had  of 
our  own  regiment,  amounting  to  above  thirty-two,  and 
took  the  hills  towards  Yorkshire.  Here  we  met  with 
such  unpassable  hills,  vast  moors,  rocks,  and  stony 
ways,  as  lamed  all  our  horses,  and  tired  our  men ;  and 


236     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 


sometimes  I  was  ready  to  think  we  should  never  be 
able  to  get  over  them,  till  our  horses  failing,  and  jack- 
boots being  but  indifferent  things  to  travel  in,  we  might 
be  starved  before  we  should  find  any  road,  or  towns ;  for 
guide  we  had  none,  but  a  boy  who  knew  but  little, 
and  would  cry  when  we  asked  him  any  questions.  I 
believe  neither  men  nor  horses  ever  passed  in  some 
places  where  we  went,  and  for  twenty  hours  we  saw 
not  a  town  or  a  house,  excepting  sometimes  from  the 
top  of  the  mountains,  at  a  vast  distance.  I  am  per- 
suaded we  might  have  encamped  here,  if  we  had  had 
provisions,  till  the  war  had  been  over,  and  have  met 
with  no  disturbance ;  and  I  have  often  wondered  since, 
how  we  got  into  such  horrible  places,  as  much  as  how 
we  got  out.  That  which  was  worse  to  us  than  all  the 
rest,  was,  that  we  knew  not  where  we  were  going,  nor 
what  part  of  the  country  we  should  come  into,  when 
we  came  out  of  those  desolate  crags.  At  last,  after  a 
terrible  fatigue,  we  began  to  see  the  western  parts  of 
Yorkshire,  some  few  villages,  and  the  country  at  a 
distance  looked  a  little  like  England,  for  I  thought 
before  it  looked  like  old  Brennus  Hill,  which  the 
Grisons  call  the  "  grandfather  of  the  Alps."  We  got 
some  relief  in  the  villages,  which  indeed  some  of  us 
had  so  much  need  of,  that  they  were  hardly  able  to  sit 
their  horses,  and  others  were  forced  to  help  them  off, 
they  were  so  faint.  I  never  felt  so  much  of  the  power 
of  hunger  in  my  life,  for  having  not  eaten  in  thirty 
hours,  I  was  as  ravenous  as  a  hound ;  and  if  I  had 
had  a  piece  of  horse-flesh,  I  believe  I  should  not  have 
had  patience  to  have  staid  dressing  it,  but  have  fallen 
upon  it  raw,  and  have  eaten  it  as  greedily  as  a  Tartar. 
However,  I  ate  very  cautiously,  having  often  seen  the 
danger  of  men's  eating  heartily  after  long  fasting. 

Our  next  care  was  to  inquire  our  way.     Halifax, 
they  told  us,  was  on  our  right.     There  we  durst  not 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     237 

think  of  going.  Skipton  was  before  us,  and  there  we 
knew  not  how  it  was,  for  a  body  of  3000  horse,  sent 
out  by  the  enemy  in  pursuit  of  Prince  Rupert,  had 
been  there  but  two  days  before,  and  the  country  people 
could  not  tell  us  whether  they  were  gone,  or  no. 
And  Manchester's  horse,  which  were  sent  out  after 
our  party,  were  then  at  Halifax,  in  quest  of  us,  and 
afterwards  marched  into  Cheshire.  In  this  distress 
we  would  have  hired  a  guide,  but  none  of  the  country 
people  would  go  with  us,  for  the  Roundheads  would 
hang  them,  they  said,  when  they  came  there.  Upon 
this  I  called  a  fellow  to  me,  "  Hark  ye,  friend,"  says 
I,  "dost  thee  know  the  way  so  as  to  bring  us  into 
Westmoreland,  and  not  keep  the  great  road  from 
York  ? "  "  Ay,  merry,"  says  he,  "  I  ken  the  ways 
weel  enou  !  "  "And  you  would  go  and  guide  us," 
said  I,  "  but  that  you  are  afraid  the  Roundheads  will 
hang  you  ? "  "  Indeed  would  I,"  says  the  fellow. 
"  Why  then,"  says  I,  "  thou  hadst  as  good  be  hanged 
by  a  Cavalier  as  a  Roundhead,  for  if  thou  wilt  not  go, 
I'll  hang  thee  just  now."  "  Na,  an  ye  serve  me  soa," 
says  the  fellow,  "  Ise  ene  gang  with  ye,  for  I  care  not 
for  hanging  ;  and  ye'll  get  me  a  good  horse,  Ise  gang 
and  be  one  of  ye,  for  I'll  nere  come  heame  more." 
This  pleased  us  still  better,  and  we  mounted  the  fellow, 
for  three  of  our  men  died  that  night  with  the  extreme 
fatigue  of  the  last  service. 

Next  morning,  when  our  new  trooper  was  mounted 
and  clothed  we  hardly  knew  him ;  and  this  fellow  led 
us  by  such  ways,  such  wildernesses,  and  yet  with  such 
prudence,  keeping  the  hills  to  the  left,  that  we  might 
have  the  villages  to  refresh  ourselves,  that  without  him, 
we  had  certainly  either  perished  in  those  mountains,  or 
fallen  into  the  enemy's  hands.  We  passed  the  great 
road  from  York  so  critically  as  to  time,  that  from  one 
of  the  hills  he  showed  us  a  party  of  the  enemy's  horse, 


238     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

who  were  then  marching  into  Westmoreland.  We  lay 
still  that  day,  finding  we  were  not  discovered  by  them  ; 
and  our  guide  proved  the  best  scout  that  we  could 
have  had ;  for  he  would  go  out  ten  miles  at  a  time, 
and  bring  us  in  all  the  news  of  the  country.  Here  he 
brought  us  word,  that  York  was  surrendered  upon 
articles,  and  that  Newcastle,  which  had  been  surprised 
by  the  king's  party,  was  besieged  by  another  army  of 
Scots  advanced  to  help  their  brethren. 

Along  the  edges  of  those  vast  mountains  we  passed 
with  the  help  of  our  guide,  till  we  came  into  the 
forest  of  Swale ;  and  finding  ourselves  perfectly  con- 
cealed here,  for  no  soldier  had  ever  been  here  all  the 
war,  nor  perhaps  would  not,  if  it  had  las'  1  seven 
years,  we  thought  we  wanted  a  few  days'  rest,  at  least 
for  our  horses.  So  we  resolved  to  halt ;  and  while  we 
did  so,  we  made  some  disguises,  and  sent  out  some 
spies  into  the  country ;  but  as  here  were  no  great 
towns,  nor  no  post  road,  we  got  very  little  intelli- 
gence. We  rested  four  days,  and  then  marched 
again  ;  and  indeed  having  no  great  stock  of  money 
about  us,  and  not  very  free  of  that  we  had,  four 
days  was  enough  for  those  poor  places  to  be  able  to 
maintain  us. 

We  thought  ourselves  pretty  secure  now ;  but  our 
chief  care  was  how  to  get  over  those  terrible  moun- 
tains ;  for  having  passed  the  great  road  that  leads  from 
York  to  Lancaster,  the  crags,  the  farther  northward 
we  looked,  looked  still  the  worse,  and  our  business 
was  all  on  the  other  side.  Our  guide  told  us,  he 
would  bring  us  out,  if  we  would  have  patience,  which 
we  were  obliged  to,  and  kept  on  this  slow  march,  till 
he  brought  us  to  Stanhope,  in  the  county  of  Durham  ; 
where  some  of  Goring's  horse,  and  two  regiments  of 
foot,  had  their  quarters.  This  was  nineteen  days  from 
the  battle  of  Marston  Moor.  The  prince,  who  was 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     239 

then  at  Kendal  in  Westmoreland,  and  who  had  given 
me  over  as  lost,  when  he  had  news  of  our  arrival,  sent 
an  express  to  me,  to  meet  him  at  Appleby.  I  went 
thither  accordingly,  and  gave  him  an  account  of  our 
journey,  and  there  I  heard  the  short  history  of  the 
other  part  of  our  men,  whom  we  parted  from  in  Lan- 
cashire. They  made  the  best  of  their  way  north ; 
they  had  two  resolute  gentlemen  who  commanded ; 
and  being  so  closely  pursued  by  the  enemy,  that  they 
found  themselves  under  a  necessity  of  fighting,  they 
halted,  and  faced  about,  expecting  the  charge.  The 
boldness  of  the  action  made  the  officer  who  led  the 
enemy's  horse  (which  it  seems  were  the  county  horse 
only)  afraid  of  them  ;  which  they  perceiving,  taking 
the  advantage  of  his  fears,  bravely  advance,  and  charge 
them ;  and,  though  they  were  about  200  horse,  they 
routed  them,  killed  about  thirty  or  forty,  got  some 
horses,  and  some  money,  and  pushed  on  their  march 
night  and  day  ;  but  coming  near  Lancaster,  they  were 
so  waylaid  and  pursued,  that  they  agreed  to  separate, 
and  shift  every  man  for  himself.  Many  of  them  fell 
into  the  enemy's  hands ;  some  were  killed  attempting 
to  pass  through  the  river  Lune ;  some  went  back 
again,  six  or  seven  got  to  Bolton,  and  about  eighteen 
got  safe  to  Prince  Rupert. 

The  prince  was  in  a  better  condition  hereabouts 
than  I  expected ;  he  and  my  Lord  Goring,  with  the 
help  of  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale,  and  the  gentlemen 
of  Cumberland,  had  gotten  a  body  of  4000  horse,  and 
about  6000  foot ;  they  had  retaken  Newcastle,  Tyne- 
mouth,  Durham,  Stockton,  and  several  towns  of  con- 
sequence from  the  Scots,  and  might  have  cut  them  out 
work  enough  still,  if  that  base  people,  resolved  to 
engage  their  whole  interest  to  ruin  their  sovereign,  had 
not  sent  a  second  army  of  10,000  men,  under  the 
Earl  of  Callander,  to  help  their  first.  These  came  and 


240     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

laid  siege  to  Newcastle,  but  found  more  vigorous  re- 
sistance now  than  they  had  done  before. 

There  were  in  the  town  Sir  John  Morley,  the 
Lord  Crawford,  Lord  Reay,  and  Maxwell,  Scots;  and 
old  soldiers,  who  were  resolved  their  countrymen 
should  buy  the  town  very  dear,  if  they  had  it ;  and 
had  it  not  been  for  our  disaster  at  Marston  Moor,  they 
had  never  had  it ;  for  Callander,  finding  he  was  not 
able  to  carry  the  town,  sends  to  General  Leven  to 
come  from  the  siege  of  York  to  help  him. 

Meantime  the  prince  forms  a  very  good  army,  and 
the  Lord  Goring,  with  10,000  men,  shows  himself 
on  the  borders  of  Scotland,  to  try  if  that  might  not 
cause  the  Scots  to  recall  their  forces ;  and,  I  am 
persuaded,  had  he  entered  Scotland,  the  Parliament 
of  Scotland  had  recalled  the  Earl  of  Callander,  for 
they  had  but  5000  men  left  in  arms  to  send  against 
him ;  but  they  were  loth  to  venture.  However, 
this  effect  it  had,  that  it  called  the  Scots  northward 
again,  and  found  them  work  there  for  the  rest  of  the 
summer  to  reduce  the  several  towns  in  the  bishopric 
of  Durham. 

I  found  with  the  prince  the  poor  remains  of  my 
regiment,  which,  when  joined  with  those  that  had  been 
with  me,  could  not  all  make  up  three  troops,  and  but 
two  captains,  three  lieutenants,  and  one  cornet;  the  rest 
were  dispersed,  killed,  or  taken  prisoners.  However, 
with  those,  which  we  still  called  a  regiment,  I  joined  the 
prince,  and  after  having  done  all  we  could  on  that  side, 
the  Scots  being  returned  from  York,  the  prince  returned 
through  Lancashire  to  Chester. 

The  enemy  often  appeared  and  alarmed  us,  and  once 
fell  on  one  of  our  parties,  and  killed  us  about  a  hundred 
men;  but  we  were  too  many  for  them  to  pretend  to 
fight  us,  so  we  came  to  Bolton,  beat  the  troops  of  the 
enemy  near  Warrington,  where  I  got  a  cut  with  a 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     241 

halberd  in  my  face,  and  arrived  at  Chester  the  begin- 
ning of  August. 

The  Parliament,  upon  their  great  success  in  tjie 
north,  thinking  the  king's  forces  quite  broken,  had 
sent  their  General  Essex  into  the  west,  where  the 
king's  army  was  commanded  by  Prince  Maurice, 
Prince  Rupert's  elder  brother,  but  not  very  strong ; 
and  the  king  being,  as  they  supposed,  by  the  absence 
of  Prince  Rupert,  weakened  so  much  as  that  he  might 
be  checked  by  Sir  William  Waller,  who,  with  4500 
foot,  and  1500  horse,  was  at  that  time  about  Win- 
chester, having  lately  beaten  Sir  Ralph  Hopton ; — upon 
all  these  considerations,  the  Earl  of  Essex  marches 
westward. 

The  forces  in  the  west  being  too  weak  to  oppose 
him,  everything  gave  way  to  him,  and  all  people  ex- 
pected he  would  besiege  Exeter,  where  the  queen  was 
newly  lying-in,  and  sent  a  trumpet  to  desire  he  would 
forbear  the  city,  while  she  could  be  removed,  which 
he  did,  and  passed  on  westward,  took  Tiverton,  Bide- 
ford,  Barnstaple,  Launceston,  relieved  Plymouth,  drove 
Sir  Richard  Grenvile  up  into  Cornwall,  and  followed 
him  thither,  but  left  Prince  Maurice  behind  him  with 
4000  men  about  Barnstaple  and  Exeter.  The  king 
in  the  meantime,  marches  from  Oxford  into  Worcester, 
with  Waller  at  his  heels.  At  Edgehill  his  Majesty 
turns  upon  Waller,  and  gave  him  a  brush,  to  put  him 
in  mind  of  the  place.  The  king  goes  on  to  Worcester, 
sends  300  horse  to  relieve  Durley  Castle,  besieged  by 
the  Earl  of  Denby,  and  sending  part  of  his  forces  to 
Bristol,  returns  to  Oxford. 

His  Majesty  had  now  firmly  resolved  to  march  into 
the  west,  not  having  yet  any  account  of  our  misfortunes 
in  the  north.  Waller  and  Middleton  waylay  the  king 
at  Cropredy  Bridge.  The  king  assaults  Middleton  at 
the  bridge  Waller's  men  were  posted  with  some 


242     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

cannon  to  guard  a  pass.  Middleton's  men  put  a  regi- 
ment of  the  king's  foot  to  the  rout,  and  pursued  them. 
Waller's  men,  willing  to  come  in  for  the  plunder,  a  thing 
th&r  general  had  often  used  them  to,  quit  their  post 
at  the  pass,  and  their  great  guns,  to  have  part  in  the 
victory.  The  king  coming  in  seasonably  to  the  relief 
of  his  men,  routs  Middleton,  and  at  the  same  time 
sends  a  party  round,  who  clapped  in  between  Sir 
William  Waller's  men  and  their  great  guns,  and 
secured  the  pass  and  the  cannon  too.  The  king  took 
three  colonels,  besides  other  officers,  and  about  300 
men  prisoners,  with  eight  great  guns,  nineteen  carriages 
of  ammunition,  and  killed  about  200  men. 

Waller  lost  his  reputation  in  this  fight,  and  was  ex- 
ceedingly slighted  ever  after,  even  by  his  own  party ; 
but  especially  by  such  as  were  of  General  Essex's 
party,  between  whom  and  Waller  there  had  been 
jealousies  and  misunderstandings  for  some  time. 

The  king,  about  8000  strong,  marched  on  to  Bristol, 
where  Sir  William  Hopton  joined  him,  and  from  thence 
he  follows  Essex  into  Cornwall.  Essex  still  following 
Grenvile,  the  king  conies  to  Exeter,  and  joining  with 
Prince  Maurice,  resolves  to  pursue  Essex ;  and  now 
the  Earl  of  Essex  began  to  see  his  mistake,  being 
cooped  up  between  two  seas,  the  king's  army  in  his 
rear,  the  country  his  enemy,  and  Sir  Richard  Grenvile 
in  his  van. 

The  king,  who  always  took  the  best  measures  when 
he  was  left  to  his  own  counsel,  wisely  refuses  to  engage, 
though  superior  in  number,  and  much  stronger  in  horse. 
Essex  often  drew  out  to  fight,  but  the  king  fortifies, 
takes  the  passes  and  bridges,  plants  cannon,  and  secures 
the  country  to  keep  off  provisions,  and  continually 
straitens  their  quarters,  but  would  not  fight. 

Now  Essex  sends  away  to  the  Parliament  for  help, 
and  they  write  to  Waller,  and  Middleton,  and  Man- 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     243 

Chester  to  follow,  and  come  up  with  the  king  in  his 
rear ;  but  some  were  too  far  off,  and  could  not,  as 
Manchester  and  Fairfax ;  others  made  no  haste,  as 
having  no  mind  to  it,  as  Waller  and  Middleton,  and  if 
they  had,  it  had  beem  too  late. 

At  last  the  Earl  of  Essex,  finding  nothing  to  be 
done,  and  unwilling  to  fall  into  the  king's  hands, 
takes  shipping,  and  leaves  his  army  to  shift  for  them- 
selves. The  horse,  under  Sir  William  Balfour,  the 
best  horse  officer,  and,  without  comparison,  the  bravest 
in  all  the  Parliament  army,  advanced  in  small  parties, 
as  if  to  skirmish,  but  following  in  with  the  whole  body, 
being  3500  horse,  broke  through,  and  got  off.  Though 
this  was  a  loss  to  the  king's  victory,  yet  the  foot  were 
now  in  a  condition  so  much  the  worse.  Brave  old 
Skippon  proposed  to  fight  through  with  the  foot  and 
die,  as  he  called  it,  like  Englishmen,  with  sword  in 
hand ;  but  the  rest  of  the  officers  shook  their  heads  at 
it,  for,  being  well  paid,  they  had  at  present  no  occasion 
for  dying. 

Seeing  it  thus,  they  agreed  to  treat,  and  the  king 
grants  them  conditions,  upon  laying  down  their  arms, 
to  march  off  free.  This  was  too  much.  Had  his 
Majesty  but  obliged  them  upon  oath  not  to  serve  again 
for  a  certain  time,  he  had  done  his  business  ;  but  this  was 
not  thought  of ;  so  they  passed  free,  only  disarmed,  the 
soldiers  not  being  allowed  so  much  as  their  swords. 

The  king  gained  by  this  treaty  forty  pieces  of 
cannon,  all  of  brass,  300  barrels  of  gunpowder,  9000 
arms,  8000  swords,  match  and  bullet  in  proportion, 
200  waggons,  150  colours  and  standards,  all  the  bag 
and  baggage  of  the  army,  and  about  1000  of  the  men 
listed  in  his  army.  This  was  a  complete  victory  with- 
out bloodshed ;  and  had  the  king  but  secured  the  men 
from  serving  but  for  six  months,  it  had  most  effectually 
answered  the  battle  of  Marston  Moor. 


244     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

A.S  it  was,  it  infused  new  life  into  all  his  Majesty's 
forces  and  friends,  and  retrieved  his  affairs  very  much  ; 
but  especially  it  encouraged  us  in  the  north,  who  were 
more  sensible  of  the  blow  received  at  Marston  Moor, 
and  of  the  destruction  the  Scots  were  bringing  upon 
us  all. 

While  I  was  at  Chester,  we  had  some  small 
skirmishes  with  Sir  William  Brereton.  One  morning 
in  particular  Sir  William  drew  up,  and  faced  us,  and 
one  of  our  colonels  of  horse  observing  the  enemy  to  be 
not,  as  he  thought,  above  200,  desires  leave  of  Prince 
Rupert  to  attack  them  with  the  like  number,  and 
accordingly  he  sallied  out  with  200  horse.  I  stood 
drawn  up  without  the  city  with  800  more,  ready  to 
bring  him  off,  if  he  should  be  put  to  the  worst,  which 
happened  accordingly ;  for,  not  having  discovered 
neither  the  country  nor  the  enemy  as  he  thought,  Sir 
William  Brereton  drew  him  into  an  ambuscade ;  so 
that  before  he  came  up  with  Sir  William's  forces,  near 
enough  to  charge,  he  finds  about  300  horse  in  his  rear. 
Though  he  was  surprised  at  this,  yet,  being  a  man  of 
a  ready  courage,  he  boldly  faces  about  with  1 50  of 
his  men,  leaving  the  other  fifty  to  face  Sir  William. 
With  this  small  party,  he  desperately  charges  the  300 
horse  in  his  rear,  and  putting  them  into  disorder,  breaks 
through  them,  and,  had  there  been  no  greater  force,  he 
had  cut  them  all  in  pieces.  Flushed  with  this  success, 
and  loth  to  desert  the  fifty  men  he  had  left  behind, 
he  faces  about  again,  and  charges  through  them  again, 
and  with  these  two  charges  entirely  routs  them.  Sir 
William  Brereton  finding  himself  a  little  disappointed, 
advances,  and  falls  upon  the  fifty  men  just  as  the 
colonel  came  up  to  them ;  they  fought  him  with  a 
great  deal  of  bravery,  but  the  colonel  being  unfortu- 
nately killed  in  the  first  charge,  the  men  gave  way,  and 
came  flying  all  in  confusion]  with  the  enemy  at  their 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     245 

heels.  As  soon  as  I  saw  this,  I  advanced,  according 
to  my  orders,  and  the  enemy,  as  soon  as  I  appeared, 
gave  over  the  pursuit.  This  gentleman,  as  I  remember, 
was  Colonel  Marrow ;  we  fetched  off  his  body,  and 
retreated  into  Chester. 

The  next  morning  the  prince  drew  out  of  the  city 
with  about  1200  horse  and  2000  foot,  and  attacked 
Sir  William  Brereton  in  his  quarters.  The  fight  was 
very  sharp  for  the  time,  and  near  700  men,  on  both 
sides,  were  killed  ;  but  Sir  William  would  not  put  it 
to  a  general  engagement,  so  the  prince  drew  off,  con- 
tenting himself  to  have  insulted  him  in  his  quarters. 

We  now  had  received  orders  from  the  king  to  join 
him  ;  but  I  representing  to  the  prince  the  condition 
of  my  regiment,  which  was  now  100  men,  and  that, 
being  within  twenty-five  miles  of  my  father's  house,  I 
might  soon  recruit  it,  my  father  having  got  some  men 
together  already,  I  desired  leave  to  lie  at  Shrewsbury 
for  a  month,  to  make  up  my  men.  Accordingly, 
having  obtained  his  leave,  I  marched  to  Wrexham, 
where  in  two  days'  time  I  got  twenty  men,  and  so  on 
to  Shrewsbury.  I  had  not  been  here  above  ten  days, 
but  I  received  an  express  to  come  away  with  what 
recruits  I  had  got  together,  Prince  Rupert  having 
positive  orders  to  meet  the  king  by  a  certain  day.  I 
had  not  mounted  100  men,  though  I  had  listed  above 
200,  when  these  orders  came ;  but  leaving  my  father 
to  complete  them  for  me,  I  marched  with  those  I  had 
and  came  to  Oxford. 

The  king,  after  the  rout  of  the  Parliament  forces  in 
the  west,  was  marched  back,  took  Barnstaple,  Plympton, 
Launceston,  Tiverton,  and  several  other  places,  and 
left  Plymouth  besieged  by  Sir  Richard  Grenvile,  met 
with  Sir  William  Waller  at  Shaftesbury,  and  again  at 
Andover,  and  boxed  him  at  both  places,  and  marched 
for  Newbury.  Here  the  king  sent  for  Prince  Rupert 


246     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

to  meet  him,  who  with  3000  horse  made  long  marches 
to  join  him  ;  but  the  Parliament  having  joined  their  three 
armies  together,  Manchester  from  the  north,  Waller 
and  Essex  (the  men  being  clothed  and  armed)  from 
the  west,  had  attacked  the  king,  and  obliged  hint:  to 
fight  the  day  before  the  prince  came  up. 

The  king  had  so  posted  himself,  as  that  he  could 
not  be  obliged  to  fight  but  with  advantage,  the  Parlia- 
ment's forces  being  superior  in  number,  and  therefore, 
when  they  attacked  him,  he  galled  them  with  his 
cannon,  and  declining  to  come  to  a  general  battle,  stood 
upon  the  defensive,  expecting  Prince  Rupert  with  the 
horse. 

The  Parliament's  forces  had  some  advantage  over 
our  foot,  and  took  the  Earl  of  Cleveland  prisoner. 
But  the  king,  whose  foot  were  not  above  one  to  two, 
drew  his  men  under  the  cannon  of  Donnington  Castle, 
and  having  secured  his  artillery  and  baggage,  made  a 
retreat  with  his  foot  in  very  good  order,  having  not 
lost  in  all  the  fight  above  300  men,  and  the  Parliament 
as  many.  We  lost  five  pieces  of  cannon  and  took  two, 
having  repulsed  the  Earl  of  Manchester's  men  on  the 
north  side  of  the  town,  with  considerable  loss. 

The  king  having  lodged  his  train  of  artillery  and 
baggage  in  Donnington  Castle,  marched  the  next  day 
for  Oxford.  There  we  joined  him  with  3000  horse 
and  2000  foot.  Encouraged  with  this  reinforcement, 
the  king  appears  upon  the  hills  on  the  north-west  of 
Newbury,  and  faces  the  Parliament  army.  The  Parlia- 
ment having  too  many  generals  as  well  as  soldiers,  they 
could  not  agree  whether  they  should  fight  or  no.  This 
was  no  great  token  of  the  victory  they  boasted  of,  for 
they  were  now  twice  our  number  in  the  whole,  and 
their  foot  three  for  one.  The  king  stood  in  battalia  all 
day,  and  finding  the  Parliament  forces  had  no  stomach 
to  engage  him,  he  drew  away  his  cannon  and  baggage 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     247 

out  of  Donnington  Castle  in  view  of  their  whole  army, 
and  marched  away  to  Oxford. 

This  was  such  a  false  step  of  the  Parliament's  generals, 
that  all  the  people  cried  shame  of  them.  The  Parlia- 
ment appointed  a  committee  to  inquire  into  it.  Crom- 
well accused  Manchester,  and  he  Waller,  and  so  they 
laid  the  fault  upon  one  another.  Waller  would  have 
been  glad  to  have  charged  it  upon  Essex,  but  as  it 
happened  he  was  not  in  the  army,  having  been  taken 
ill  some  days  before.  But  as  it  generally  is  when  a 
mistake  is  made,  the  actors  fall  out  among  themselves, 
so  it  was  here.  No  doubt  it  was  as  false  a  step  as  that 
of  Cornwall,  to  let  the  king  fetch  away  his  baggage  and 
cannon  in  the  face  of  three  armies,  and  never  fire  a  shot 
at  them. 

The  king  had  not  above  8000  foot  in  his  army,  and 
they  above  25,000.  'Tis  true  the  king  had  8000 
horse,  a  fine  body,  and  much  superior  to  theirs ;  but 
the  foot  might,  with  the  greatest  ease  in  the  world, 
have  prevented  the  removing  the  cannon,  and  in  three 
days'  time  have  taken  the  castle,  with  all  that  was  in  it. 

Those  differences  produced  their  self-denying  ordi- 
nance, and  the  putting  by  most  of  their  old  generals, 
as  Essex,  Waller,  Manchester,  and  the  like  ;  and  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax,  a  terrible  man  in  the  field,  though 
the  mildest  of  men  out  of  it,  was  voted  to  have  the 
command  of  all  their  forces,  and  Lambert  to  take  the 
command  of  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax's  troops  in  the  north, 
old  Skippon  being  Major- General. 

This  winter  was  spent  on  the  enemy's  side  in  model- 
ling, as  they  called  it,  their  army,  and  on  our  side  in 
recruiting  ours,  and  some  petty  excursions.  Amongst 
the  many  addresses  I  observed  one  from  Sussex  or 
Surrey,  complaining  of  the  rudeness  of  their  soldiers, 
and  particularly  of  the  ravishing  of  women  and  the 
murdering  of  men,  from  which  I  only  observed  that 


248     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

there  were  disorders  among  them  as  well  as  among  us, 
only  with  this  difference,  that  they,  for  reasons  I  men- 
tioned before,  were  under  circumstances  to  prevent  it 
better  than  the  king.  But  I  must  do  the  king's 
memory  that  justice,  that  he  used  all  possible  methods, 
by  punishment  of  soldiers,  charging,  and  sometimes 
entreating,  the  gentlemen  not  to  suffer  such  disorders 
and  such  violences  in  their  men ;  but  it  was  to  no 
purpose  for  his  Majesty  to  attempt  it,  while  his  officers, 
generals,  and  great  men  winked  at  it ;  for  the  licen- 
tiousness of  the  soldier  is  supposed  to  be  approved  by 
the  officer  when  it  is  not  corrected. 

The  rudeness  of  the  Parliament  soldiers  began  from 
the  divisions  among  their  officers ;  for  in  many  places 
the  soldiers  grew  so  out  of  all  discipline  and  so  unsuf- 
ferably  rude,  that  they,  in  particular,  refused  to  march 
when  Sir  William  Waller  went  to  Weymouth.  This 
had  turned  to  good  account  for  us,  had  these  cursed 
Scots  been  out  of  our  way,  but  they  were  the  staff  of 
the  party  ;  and  now  they  were  daily  solicited  to  march 
southward,  which  was  a  very  great  affliction  to  the 
king  and  all  his  friends. 

One  booty  the  king  got  at  this  time,  which  was  a 
very  seasonable  assistance  to  his  affairs,  viz.,  a  great 
merchant  ship,  richly  laden  at  London,  and  bound  to 
the  East  Indies,  was,  by  the  seamen,  brought  into 
Bristol,  and  delivered  up  to  the  king.  Some  mer- 
chants in  Bristol  offered  the  king  ^40,000  for  her, 
which  his  Majesty  ordered  should  be  accepted,  reserv- 
ing only  thirty  great  guns  for  his  own  use. 

The  treaty  at  Uxbridge  now  was  begun,  and  we 
that  had  been  well  beaten  in  the  war  heartily  wished 
the  king  would  come  to  a  peace ;  but  we  all  foresaw 
the  clergy  would  ruin  it  all.  The  Commons  were  for 
Presbytery,  and  would  never  agree  the  bishops  should 
be  restored.  The  king  was  willinger  to  comply  with 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     249 

anything  than  this,  and  we  foresaw  it  would  be  so ; 
from  whence  we  used  to  say  among  ourselves,  "  That 
the  clergy  was  resolved  if  there  should  be  no  bishop 
there  should  be  no  king." 

This  treaty  at  Uxbridge  was  a  perfect  war  between 
the  men  of  the  gown,  ours  was  between  those  of  the 
sword  ;  and  I  cannot  but  take  notice  how  the  lawyers, 
statesmen,  and  the  clergy  of  every  side  bestirred  them- 
selves, rather  to  hinder  than  promote  the  peace. 

There  had  been  a  treaty  at  Oxford  some  time  before, 
where  the  Parliament  insisting  that  the  king  should 
pass  a  bill  to  abolish  Episcopacy,  quit  the  militia, 
abandon  several  of  his  faithful  servants  to  be  exempted 
from  pardon,  and  making  several  other  most  extravagant 
demands,  nothing  was  done,  but  the  treaty  broke  off, 
both  parties  being  rather  farther  exasperated,  than 
inclined  to  hearken  to  conditions. 

However,  soon  after  the  success  in  the  west,  his 
Majesty,  to  let  them  see  that  victory  had  not  puffed 
him  up  so  as  to  make  him  reject  the  peace,  sends  a 
message  to  the  Parliament,  to  put  them  in  mind  of 
messages  of  like  nature  which  they  had  slighted ;  and 
to  let  them  know,  that  notwithstanding  he  had  beaten 
their  forces,  he  was  yet  willing  to  hearken  to  a 
reasonable  proposal  for  putting  an  end  to  the  war. 

The  Parliament  pretended  the  king,  in  his  message, 
did  not  treat  with  them  as  a  legal  Parliament,  and  so 
made  hesitations ;  but  after  long  debates  and  delays 
they  agreed  to  draw  up  propositions  for  peace  to  be 
sent  to  the  king.  As  this  message  was  sent  to  the 
Houses  about  August,  I  think  they  made  it  the 
middle  of  November  before  they  brought  the  propo- 
sitions for  peace ;  and,  when  they  brought  them,  they 
had  no  power  to  enter  either  upon  a  treaty,  or  so  much 
as  preliminaries  for  a  treaty,  only  to  deliver  the  letter, 
and  receive  an  answer. 


250     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

However,  such  were  the  circumstances  of  affairs  at 
this  time,  that  the  king  was  uneasy  to  see  himself  thus 
treated,  and  take  no  notice  of  it :  the  king  returned  an 
answer  to  the  propositions,  and  proposed  a  treaty  by 
commissioners  which  the  Parliament  appointed. 

Three  months  more  were  spent  in  naming  commis- 
sioners. There  was  much  time  spent  in  this  treaty, 
but  little  done  ;  the  commissioners  debated  chiefly  the 
article  of  religion,  and  of  the  militia ;  in  the  latter  they 
were  very  likely  to  agree,  in  the  former  both  sides 
seemed  too  positive.  The  king  would  by  no  means 
abandon  Episcopacy,  nor  the  Parliament  Presbytery ; 
for  both  in  their  opinion  were  iure  divino. 

The  commissioners  finding  this  point  hardest  to 
adjust,  went  from  it  to  that  of  the  militia ;  but  the 
time  spinning  out,  the  king's  commissioners  demanded 
longer  time  for  the  treaty ;  the  other  sent  up  for 
instructions,  but  the  House  refused  to  lengthen  out  the 
time. 

This  was  thought  an  insolence  upon  the  king,  and 
gave  all  good  people  a  detestation  of  such  haughty 
behaviour ;  and  thus  the  hopes  of  peace  vanished,  both 
sides  prepared  for  war  with  as  much  eagerness  as  before. 

The  Parliament  was  employed  at  this  time  in  what 
they  called  a-modelling  their  army ;  that  is  to  say,  that 
now  the  Independent  party  [was]]  beginning  to  prevail ; 
and,  as  they  outdid  all  the  others  in  their  resolution  of 
carrying  on  the  war  to  all  extremities,  so  they  were 
both  the  more  vigorous  and  more  politic  party  in 
carrying  it  on. 

Indeed,  the  war  was  after  this  carried  on  with  greater 
animosity  than  ever,  and  the  generals  pushed  forward 
with  a  vigour  that,  as  it  had  something  in  it  unusual, 
so  it  told  us  plainly  from  this  time,  whatever  they  did 
before,  they  now  pushed  at  the  ruin  even  of  the  mon- 
archy itself. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     251 

All  this  while  also  the  war  went  on,  and  though  the 
Parliament  had  no  settled  army,  yet  their  regiments  and 
troops  were  always  in  action ;  and  the  sword  was  at 
work  in  every  part  of  the  kingdom. 

Among  an  infinite  number  of  party  skirmishings  and 
fights  this  winter,  one  happened  which  nearly  concerned 
me,  which  was  the  surprise  of  the  town  and  castle  of 
Shrewsbury.  Colonel  Mitton,  with  about  1200  horse 
and  foot,  having  intelligence  with  some  people  in  the 
town,  on  a  Sunday  morning  early  broke  into  the  town 
and  took  it,  castle  and  all.  The  loss  for  the  quality, 
more  than  the  number,  was  very  great  to  the  king's 
affairs.  They  took  there  fifteen  pieces  of  cannon, 
Prince  Maurice's  magazine  of  arms  and  ammunition, 
Prince  Rupert's  baggage,  above  fifty  persons  of  quality 
and  officers.  There  was  not  above  eight  or  ten  men 
killed  on  both  sides,  for  the  town  was  surprised,  not 
stormed.  I  had  a  particular  loss  in  this  action ;  for 
all  the  men  and  horses  my  father  had  got  together  for 
the  recruiting  my  regiment  were  here  lost  and  dispersed, 
and,  which  was  the  worse,  my  father  happening  to  be 
then  in  the  town,  was  taken  prisoner,  and  carried  to 
Beeston  Castle  in  Cheshire. 

I  was  quartered  all  this  winter  at  Banbury,  and  went 
little  abroad ;  nor  had  we  any  action  till  the  latter  end 
of  February,  when  I  was  ordered  to  march  to  Leicester 
with  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale,  in  order,  as  we  thought, 
to  raise  a  body  of  men  in  that  county  and  Staffordshire 
to  join  the  king. 

We  lay  at  Daventry  one  night,  and  continuing  our 
march  to  pass  the  river  above  Northampton,  that  town 
being  possessed  by  the  enemy,  we  understood  a  party 
of  Northampton  forces  were  abroad,  and  intended  to 
attack  us.  Accordingly,  in  the  afternoon  our  scouts 
brought  us  word  the  enemy  were  quartered  in  some 
villages  on  the  road  to  Coventry.  Our  commander, 


252     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 


thinking  it  much  better  to  set  upon  them  in  their 
quarters,  than  to  wait  for  them  in  the  field,  resolves 
to  attack  them  early  in  the  morning  before  they  were 
aware  of  it.  We  refreshed  ourselves  in  the  field  for 
that  day,  and,  getting  into  a  great  wood  near  the 
enemy,  we  stayed  there  all  night,  till  almost  break  of 
day,  without  being  discovered. 

In  the  morning  very  early  we  heard  the  enemy's 
trumpets  sound  to  horse.  This  roused  us  to  look 
abroad,  and,  sending  out  a  scout,  he  brought  us  word  a 
part  of  the  enemy  was  at  hand.  We  were  vexed  to  be 
so  disappointed,  but  finding  their  party  small  enough  to 
be  dealt  with,  Sir  Marmaduke  ordered  me  to  charge 
them  with  300  horse  and  200  dragoons,  while  he  at 
the  same  time  entered  the  town.  Accordingly  I  lay 
still  till  they  came  to  the  very  skirt  of  the  wood  where 
I  was  posted,  when  I  saluted  them  with  a  volley  from 
my  dragoons  out  of  the  wood,  and  immediately  showed 
myself  with  my  horse  on  their  front  ready  to  charge 
them.  They  appeared  not  to  be  surprised,  and  received 
our  charge  with  great  resolution  ;  and,  being  above  400 
men,  they  pushed  me  vigorously  in  their  turn,  putting 
my  men  into  some  disorder.  In  this  extremity  I  sent 
to  order  my  dragoons  to  charge  them  in  the  flank,  which 
they  did  with  great  bravery,  and  the  other  still  main- 
tained the  fight  with  desperate  resolution.  There  was 
no  want  of  courage  in  our  men  on  both  sides,  but  our 
dragoons  had  the  advantage,  and  at  last  routed  them, 
and  drove  them  back  to  the  village.  Here  Sir  Mar- 
maduke Langdale  had  his  hands  full  too,  for  my  firing 
had  alarmed  the  towns  adjacent,  that  when  he  came 
into  the  town  he  found  them  all  in  arms,  and,  contrary 
to  his  expectation,  two  regiments  of  foot,  with  about 
500  horse  more.  As  Sir  Marmaduke  had  no  foot, 
only  horse  and  dragoons,  this  was  a  surprise  to  him ; 
but  he  caused  his  dragoons  to  enter  the  town  and  charge 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     253 

che  foot,  while  his  horse  secured  the  avenues  of  the 
town. 

The  dragoons  bravely  attacked  the  foot,  and  Sir 
Marmaduke  falling  in  with  his  horse,  the  fight  was 
obstinate  and  very  bloody,  when  the  horse  that  I  had 
routed  came  flying  into  the  street  of  the  village,  and 
my  men  at  their  heels.  Immediately  I  left  the  pursuit, 
and  fell  in  with  all  my  force  to  the  assistance  of  my 
friends,  and,  after  an  obstinate  resistance,  we  routed  the 
whole  party;  we  killed  about  700  men,  took  350,  27 
officers,  100  arms,  all  their  baggage,  and  200  horses, 
and  continued  our  march  to  Harborough,  where  we 
halted  to  refresh  ourselves. 

Between  Harborough  and  Leicester  we  met  with  a 
party  of  800  dragoons  of  the  Parliament  forces.  They 
found  themselves  too  few  to  attack  us,  and  therefore  to 
avoid  us  they  had  gotten  into  a  small  wood ;  but  per- 
ceiving themselves  discovered,  they  came  boldly  out, 
and  placed  themselves  at  the  entrance  into  a  lane,  lining 
both  sides  of  the  hedges  with  their  shot.  We  imme- 
diately attacked  them,  beat  them  from  their  hedges, 
beat  them  into  the  wood,  and  out  of  the  wood  again, 
and  forced  them  at  last  to  a  downright  run  away,  on 
foot,  among  the  enclosures,  where  we  could  not  follow 
them,  killed  about  100  of  them,  and  took  250  prisoners, 
with  all  their  horses,  and  came  that  night  to  Leicester. 
When  we  came  to  Leicester,  and  had  taken  up  our 
quarters,  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale  sent  for  me  to  sup 
with  him,  and  told  me  that  he  had  a  secret  commission 
in  his  pocket,  which  his  Majesty  had  commanded  him 
not  to  open  till  he  came  to  Leicester  ;  that  now  he  had 
sent  for  me  to  open  it  together,  that  we  might  know 
what  it  was  we  were  to  do,  and  to  consider  how  to  do 
it ;  so  pulling  out  his  sealed  orders,  we  found  we  were 
to  get  what  force  we  could  together,  and  a  certain 
number  of  carriages  with  ammunition,  which  the  gover- 


254     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 


nor  of  Leicester  was  to  deliver  us,  and  a  certain  quantity 
of  provision,  especially  corn  and  salt,  and  to  relieve 
Newark.  This  town  had  been  long  besieged.  The 
fortifications  of  the  place,  together  with  its  situation, 
had  rendered  it  the  strongest  piece  in  England  ;  and, 
as  it  was  the  greatest  pass  in  England,  so  it  was  of  vast 
consequence  to  the  king's  affairs.  There  was  in  it  a 
garrison  of  brave  old  rugged  boys,  fellows  that,  like 
Count  Tilly's  Germans,  had  iron  faces,  and  they  had 
defended  themselves  with  extraordinary  bravery  a  great 
while,  but  were  reduced  to  an  exceeding  strait  for  want 
of  provisions. 

Accordingly  we  received  the  ammunition  and  provi- 
sions, and  away  we  went  for  Newark  ;  about  Melton 
Mowbray,  Colonel  Rossiter  set  upon  us,  with  above 
3000  men ;  we  were  about  the  same  number,  having 
2500  horse,  and  800  dragoons.  We  had  some  foot, 
but  they  were  still  at  Harborough,  and  were  ordered 
to  come  after  us. 

Rossiter,  like  a  brave  officer  as  he  was,  charged  us 
with  great  fury,  and  rather  outdid  us  in  number,  while 
we  defended  ourselves  with  all  the  eagerness  we  could, 
and  withal  gave  him  to  understand  we  were  not  so  soon 
to  be  beaten  as  he  expected.  While  the  fight  con- 
tinued doubtful,  especially  on  our  side,  our  people,  who 
had  charge  of  the  carriages  and  provisions,  began  to 
enclose  our  flanks  with  them  as  if  we  had  been  march- 
ing, which,  though  it  was  done  without  orders,  had 
two  very  good  effects,  and  which  did  us  extraordinary 
service.  First,  it  secured  us  from  being  charged  in 
the  flank,  which  Rossiter  had  twice  attempted ;  and 
secondly,  it  secured  our  carriages  from  being  plun- 
dered, which  had  spoiled  our  whole  expedition.  Being 
thus  enclosed,  we  fought  with  great  security ;  and 
though  Rossiter  made  three  desperate  charges  upon  us, 
he  could  never  break  us.  Our  men  received  him  with 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     255 

so  much  courage,  and  kept  their  order  so  well,  that 
the  enemy,  finding  it  impossible  to  force  us,  gave  it 
over,  and  left  us  to  pursue  our  orders.  We  did  not 
offer  to  chase  them,  but  contented  enough  to  have  re- 
pulsed and  be'aten  them  off,  and  our  business  being  to 
relieve  Newark,  we  proceeded. 

If  we  are  to  reckon  by  the  enemy's  usual  method, 
we  got  the  victory,  because  we  kept  the  field,  and  had 
the  pillage  of  their  dead ;  but  otherwise,  neither  side 
had  any  great  cause  to  boast.  We  lost  about  1 50  men, 
and  near  as  many  hurt ;  they  left  170  on  the  spot,  and 
carried  off  some.  How  many  they  had  wounded  we 
could  not  tell ;  we  got  seventy  or  eighty  horses,  which 
helped  to  remount  some  of  our  men  that  had  lost  theirs 
in  the  fight.  We  had,  however,  this  advantage,  that 
we  were  to  march  on  immediately  after  this  service, 
the  enemy  only  to  retire  to  their  quarters,  which  was 
but  hard  by.  This  was  an  injury  to  our  wounded  men, 
who  we  were  after  obliged  to  leave  at  Belvoir  Castle, 
and  from  thence  we  advanced  to  Newark. 

Our  business  at  Newark  was  to  relieve  the  place, 
and  this  we  resolved  to  do  whatever  it  cost,  though,  at 
the  same  time,  we  resolved  not  to  fight  unless  we  were 
forced  to  it.  The  town  was  rather  blocked  up  than 
besieged ;  the  garrison  was  strong,  but  ill-provided ; 
we  had  sent  them  word  of  our  coming  to  them,  and 
our  orders  to  relieve  them,  and  they  proposed  some 
measures  for  our  doing  it.  The  chief  strength  of  the 
enemy  lay  on  the  other  side  of  the  river ;  but  they 
having  also  some  notice  of  our  design,  had  sent  over 
forces  to  strengthen  their  leaguer  on  this  side.  The 
garrison  had  often  surprised  them  by  sallies,  and  indeed 
had  chiefly  subsisted  for  some  time  by  what  they  brought 
in  on  this  manner. 

Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale,  who  was  our  general  for 
the  expedition,  was  for  a  general  attempt  to  raise  the 


256     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 


siege,  but  I  had  persuaded  him  off  of  that;  first,  because, 
if  we  should  be  beaten,  as  might  be  probable,  we  then 
lost  the  town.  Sir  Marmaduke  briskly  replied,  "  A 
soldier  ought  never  to  suppose  he  shall  be  beaten." 
"  But,  sir,"  says  I,  "  you'll  get  more  honour  by  re- 
lieving the  town,  than  by  beating  them.  One  will  be 
a  credit  to  your  conduct,  as  the  other  will  be  to  your 
courage ;  and  if  you  think  you  can  beat  them,  you 
may  do  it  afterward,  and  then  if  you  are  mistaken, 
the  town  is  nevertheless  secured,  and  half  your  victory 
gained." 

He  was  prevailed  with  to  adhere  to  this  advice,  and 
accordingly  we  appeared  before  the  town  about  two 
hours  before  night.  The  horse  drew  up  before  the 
enemy's  works ;  the  enemy  drew  up  within  their  works, 
and  seeing  no  foot,  expected  when  our  dragoons  would 
dismount  and  attack  them.  They  were  in  the  right  to 
let  us  attack  them,  because  of  the  advantage  of  their 
batteries  and  works,  if  that  had  been  our  design ;  but, 
as  we  intended  only  to  amuse  them,  this  caution  of 
theirs  effected  our  design ;  for,  while  we  thus  faced 
them  with  our  horse,  two  regiments  of  foot,  which 
came  up  to  us  but  the  night  before,  and  was  all  the 
infantry  we  had,  with  the  waggons  of  provisions,  and 
500  dragoons,  taking  a  compass  clean  round  the  town, 
posted  themselves  on  the  lower  side  of  the  town  by  the 
river.  Upon  a  signal  the  garrison  agreed  on  before, 
they  sallied  out  at  this  very  juncture  with  all  the  men 
they  could  spare,  and  dividing  themselves  in  two  parties, 
while  one  party  moved  to  the  left  to  meet  our  relief, 
the  other  garty  fell  on  upon  part  of  that  body  which 
faced  us.  We  kept  in  motion,  and  upon  this  signal 
advanced  to  their  works,  and  our  dragoons  fired  upon 
them,  and  the  horse,  wheeling  and  counter-marching 
often,  kept  them  continually  expecting  to  be  attacked. 
By  this  means  the  enemy  were  kept  employed,  and  our 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     257 

foot,  with  the  waggons,  appearing  on  that  quarter  where 
they  were  least  expected,  easily  defeated  the  advanced 
guards  and  forced  that  post,  where,  entering  the  leaguer, 
the  other  part  of  the  garrison,  who  had  sallied  that  way, 
came  up  to  them,  received  the  waggons,  and  the  dra- 
goons entered  with  them  into  the  town.  That  party 
which  we  faced  on  the  other  side  of  the  works  knew 
nothing  of  what  was  done  till  all  was  over  ;  the  gar- 
rison retreated  in  good  order,  and  we  drew  off,  having 
finished  what  we  came  for  without  fighting.  Thus  we 
plentifully  stored  the  town  with  all  things  wanting,  and 
with  an  addition  of  500  dragoons  to  their  garrison; 
after  which  we  marched  away  without  fighting  a  stroke. 

Our  next  orders  were  to  relieve  Pontefract  Castle, 
another  garrison  of  the  king's,  which  had  been  besieged 
ever  since  a  few  days  after  the  battle  at  Marston  Moor, 
by  the  Lord  Fairfax,  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax,  and  other 
generals  in  their  turn.  By  the  way  we  were  joined 
with  800  horse  out  of  Derbyshire,  and  some  foot,  so 
many  as  made  us  about  4500  men  in  all. 

Colonel  Forbes,  a  Scotchman,  commanded  at  the 
siege,  in  the  absence  of  the  Lord  Fairfax.  The 
colonel  had  sent  to  my  lord  for  more  troops,  and  his 
lordship  was  gathering  his  forces  to  come  up  to  him, 
but  he  was  pleased  to  come  too  late.  We  came  up 
with  the  enemy's  leaguer  about  the  break  of  day,  and 
having  been  discovered  by  their  scouts,  they,  with  more 
courage  than  discretion,  drew  out  to  meet  us.  We 
saw  no  reason  to  avoid  them,  being  stronger  in  horse 
than  they  ;  and  though  we  had  but  a  few  foot,  we  had 
1000  dragoons,  which  helped  us  out.  We  had  placed 
our  horse  and  foot  throughout  in  one  line,  with  two 
reserves  of  horse,  and  between  every  division  of  horse 
a  division  of  foot,  only  that  on  the  extremes  of  our 
wings  there  were  two  parties  of  horse  on  each  point  by 
themselves,  and  the  dragoons  in  the  centre  on  foot. 

R 


258     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Their  foot  charged  us  home,  and  stood  with  push  of 
pike  a  great  while ;  but  their  horse  charging  our  horse 
and  musketeers,  and  being  closed  on  the  flanks,  with 
those  two  extended  troops  on  our  wings,  they  were 
presently  disordered,  and  fled  out  of  the  field.  The 
foot,  thus  deserted,  were  charged  on  every  side  and 
broken.  They  retreated  still  fighting,  and  in  good 
order  for  a  while ;  but  the  garrison  sallying  upon  them 
at  the  same  time,  and  being  followed  close  by  our 
horse,  they  were  scattered,  entirely  routed,  and  most 
of  them  killed.  The  Lord  Fairfax  was  come  with 
his  horse  as  far  as  Ferrybridge,  but  the  fight  was  over, 
and  all  he  could  do  was  to  rally  those  that  fled,  and 
save  some  of  their  carriages,  which  else  had  fallen  into 
our  hands.  We  drew  up  our  little  army  in  order  of 
battle  the  next  day,  expecting  the  Lord  Fairfax  would 
have  charged  us ;  but  his  lordship  was  so  far  from  any 
such  thoughts  that  he  placed  a  party  of  dragoons,  with 
orders  to  fortify  the  pass  at  Ferrybridge,  to  prevent  our 
falling  upon  him  in  his  retreat,  which  he  needed  not 
have  done ;  for,  having  raised  the  siege  of  Pontefract, 
our  business  was  done,  we  had  nothing  to  say  to  him, 
unless  we  had  been  strong  enough  to  stay. 

We  lost  not  above  thirty  men  in  this  action,  and  the 
enemy  300,  with  about  150  prisoners,  one  piece  of 
cannon,  all  their  ammunition,  1000  arms,  and  most  of 
their  baggage,  and  Colonel  Lambert  was  once  taken 
prisoner,  being  wounded,  but  got  off  again. 

We  brought  no  relief  for  the  garrison,  but  the  oppor- 
tunity to  furnish  themselves  out  of  the  country,  which 
they  did  very  plentifully.  The  ammunition  taken  from 
the  enemy  was  given  to  them,  which  they  wanted,  and 
was  their  due,  for  they  had  seized  it  in  the  sally  they 
made,  before  the  enemy  was  quite  defeated. 

I  cannot  omit  taking  notice  on  all  occasions  how 
exceeding  serviceable  this  method  was  of  posting 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     259 

musketeers  in  the  intervals,  among  the  horse,  in  all  this 
war.  I  persuaded  our  generals  to  it  as  much  as  possible, 
and  I  never  knew  a  body  of  horse  beaten  that  did  so ; 
yet  I  had  great  difficulty  to  prevail  upon  our  people  to 
believe  it,  though  it  was  taught  me  by  the  greatest 
general  in  the  world,  viz.,  the  King  of  Sweden.  Prince 
Rupert  did  it  at  the  battle  of  Marston  Moor;  and 
had  the  Earl  of  Newcastle  not  been  obstinate  against  it 
in  his  right  wing,  as  I  observed  before,  the  day  had  not 
been  lost.  In  discoursing  this  with  Sir  Marmaduke 
Langdale,  I  had  related  several  examples  of  the  service- 
ableness  of  these  small  bodies  of  firemen,  and  with  great 
difficulty  brought  him  to  agree,  telling  him  I  would  be 
answerable  for  the  success.  But  after  the  fight,  he  told 
me  plainly  he  saw  the  advantage  of  it,  and  would  never 
fight  otherwise  again  if  he  had  any  foot  to  place.  So 
having  relieved  these  two  places,  we  hastened  by  long 
marches  through  Derbyshire,  to  join  Prince  Rupert  on 
the  edge  of  Shropshire  and  Cheshire.  We  found 
Colonel  Rossiter  had  followed  us  at  a  distance  ever 
since  the  business  at  Melton  Mowbray,  but  never  cared 
to  attack  us,  and  we  found  he  did  the  like  still.  Our 
general  would  fain  have  been  doing  with  him  again,  but 
we  found  him  too  shy.  Once  we  laid  a  trap  for  him 
at  Dovebridge,  between  Derby  and  Burton-upon-Trent, 
the  body  being  marched  two  days  before.  Three 
hundred  dragoons  were  left  to  guard  the  bridge,  as  if 
we  were  afraid  he  should  fall  upon  us.  Upon  this  we 
marched,  as  I  said,  on  to  Burton,  and  the  next  day, 
fetching  a  compass  round,  came  to  a  village  near  Titbury 
Castle,  whose  name  I  forgot,  where  we  lay  still  expect- 
ing our  dragoons  would  be  attacked. 

Accordingly,  the  colonel,  strengthened  with  some 
troops  of  horse  from  Yorkshire,  comes  up  to  the  bridge, 
and  finding  some  dragoons  posted,  advances  to  charge 
them.  The  dragoons  immediately  get  a-horseback, 


260     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

and  run  for  it,  as  they  were  ordered.  But  the  old  lad 
was  not  to  be  caught  so,  for  he  halts  immediately  at  the 
bridge,  and  would  not  come  over  till  he  had  sent  three 
or  four  flying  parties  abroad  to  discover  the  country. 
One  of  these  parties  fell  into  our  hands,  and  received 
but  coarse  entertainment.  Finding  the  plot  would  not 
take,  we  appeared  and  drew  up  in  view  of  the  bridge, 
but  he  would  not  stir.  So  we  continued  our  march 
into  Cheshire,  where  we  joined  Prince  Rupert  and 
Prince  Maurice,  making  together  a  fine  body,  being 
above  8000  horse  and  dragoons. 

This  was  the  best  and  most  successful  expedition  I 
was  in  during  this  war.  'Twas  well  concerted,  and 
executed  with  as  much  expedition  and  conduct  as  could 
be  desired,  and  the  success  was  answerable  to  it.  And 
indeed,  considering  the  season  of  the  year  (for  we  set 
out  from  Oxford  the  latter  end  of  February),  the  ways 
bad,  and  the  season  wet,  it  was  a  terrible  march  of  above 
200  miles,  in  continual  action,  and  continually  dodged  and 
observed  by  a  vigilant  enemy,  and  at  a  time  when  the 
north  was  overrun  by  their  armies,  and  the  Scots  want- 
ing employment  for  their  forces.  Yet  in  less  than 
twenty-three  days  we  marched  200  miles,  fought  the 
enemy  in  open  field  four  times,  relieved  one  garrison 
besieged,  and  raised  the  siege  of  another,  and  joined  our 
friends  at  last  in  safety. 

The  enemy  was  in  great  pain  for  Sir  William  Brereton 
and  his  forces,  and  expresses  rode  night  and  day  to  the 
Scots  in  the  north,  and  to  the  parties  in  Lancashire  to 
come  to  his  help.  The  prince,  who  used  to  be  rather 
too  forward  to  fight  than  otherwise,  could  not  be  per- 
suaded to  make  use  of  this  opportunity,  but  loitered,  if 
I  may  be  allowed  to  say  so,  till  the  Scots,  with  a 
brigade  of  horse  and  2000  foot,  had  joined  him ;  and 
then  'twas  not  thought  proper  to  engage  them. 

I  took  this  opportunity  to  go  to  Shrewsbury  to  visit 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     261 

my  father,  who  was  a  prisoner  of  war  there,  getting  a 
pass  from  the  enemy's  governor.  They  allowed  him 
the  liberty  of  the  town,  and  sometimes  to  go  to  his  own 
house  upon  his  parole,  so  that  his  confinement  was  not 
very  much  to  his  personal  injury.  But  this,  together 
with  the  charges  he  had  been  at  in  raising  the  regiment, 
and  above  ^2  0,000  in  money  and  plate,  which  at  several 
times  he  had  lent,  or  given  rather  to  the  king,  had 
reduced  our  family  to  very  ill  circumstances ;  and  now 
they  talked  of  cutting  down  his  woods. 

I  had  a  great  deal  of  discourse  with  my  father  on 
this  affair ;  and,  finding  him  extremely  concerned,  I 
offered  to  go  to  the  king  and  desire  his  leave  to  go  to 
London  and  treat  about  his  composition,  or  to  render 
myself  a  prisoner  in  his  stead,  while  he  went  up  him- 
self. In  this  difficulty  I  treated  with  the  governor  of 
the  town,  who  very  civilly  offered  me  his  pass  to  go  for 
London,  which  I  accepted,  and,  waiting  on  Prince 
Rupert,  who  was  then  at  Worcester,  I  acquainted  him 
with  my  design.  The  prince  was  unwilling  I  should 
go  to  London;  but  told  me  he  had  some  prisoners  of 
the  Parliament's  friends  in  Cumberland,  and  he  would 
get  an  exchange  for  my  father.  I  told  him  if  he  would 
give  me  his  word  for  it  I  knew  I  might  depend  upon 
it,  otherwise  there  was  so  many  of  the  king's  party  in 
their  hands,  that  his  Majesty  was  tired  with  solicita- 
tions for  exchanges,  for  we  never  had  a  prisoner  but 
there  was  ten  offers  of  exchanges  for  him.  The  prince 
told  me  I  should  depend  upon  him ;  and  he  was  as 
good  as  his  word  quickly  after. 

While  the  prince  lay  at  Worcester  he  had  an  in- 
cursion into  Herefordshire,  and  having  made  some  of 
the  gentlemen  prisoners,  brought  them  to  Worcester ; 
and  though  it  was  an  action  which  had  not  been  usual, 
they  being  persons  not  in  arms,  yet  the  like  being  my 
father's  case,  who  was  really  not  in  commission,  nor  in 


262     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

any  military  service,  having  resigned  his  regiment  three 
years  before  to  me,  the  prince  insisted  on  exchanging 
them  for  such  as  the  Parliament  had  in  custody  in  like 
circumstances.  The  gentlemen  seeing  no  remedy, 
solicited  their  own  case  at  the  Parliament,  and  got  it 
passed  in  their  behalf;  and  by  this  means  my  father  got 
his  liberty,  and  by  the  assistance  of  the  Earl  of  Denbigh 
got  leave  to  come  to  London  to  make  a  composition 
as  a  delinquent  for  his  estate.  This  they  charged  at 
sSjooo,  but  by  the  assistance  of  the  same  noble  person 
he  got  off  for  ^4000.  Some  members  of  the  com- 
mittee moved  very  kindly  that  my  father  should  oblige 
me  to  quit  the  king's  service,  but  that,  as  a  thing  which 
might  be  out  of  his  power,  was  not  insisted  on. 

The  modelling  the  Parliament  army  took  them  up 
all  this  winter,  and  we  were  in  great  hopes  the  divisions 
which  appeared  amongst  them  might  have  weakened 
their  party ;  but  when  they  voted  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax 
to  be  general,  I  confess  I  was  convinced  the  king's 
affairs  were  lost  and  desperate.  Sir  Thomas,  abating 
the  zeal  of  his  party,  and  the  mistaken  opinion  of  his 
cause,  was  the  fittest  man  amongst  them  to  undertake 
the  charge.  He  was  a  complete  general,  strict  in  his 
discipline,  wary  in  conduct,  fearless  in  action,  unwearied 
in  the  fatigue  of  the  war,  and  withal,  of  a  modest, 
noble,  generous  disposition.  We  all  apprehended  danger 
from  him,  and  heartily  wished  him  of  our  own  side ; 
and  the  king  was  so  sensible,  though  he  would  not  dis- 
cover it,  that  when  an  account  was  brought  him  of  the 
choice  they  had  made,  he  replied,  "he  was  sorry  for 
it ;  he  had  rather  it  had  been  anybody  but  he." 

The  first  attempts  of  this  new  general  and  new  army 
were  at  Oxford,  which,  by  the  neighbourhood  of  a 
numerous  garrison  in  Abingdon,  began  to  be  very  much 
straitened  for  provisions ;  and  the  new  forces  under 
Cromwell  and  Skippon,  one  lieutenant-general,  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     263 

other  major-general  to  Fairfax,  approaching  with  a 
design  to  block  it  up,  the  king  left  the  place,  supposing 
his  absence  would  draw  them  away,  as  it  soon  did. 

The  king  resolving  to  leave  Oxford,  marches  from 
thence  with  all  his  forces,  the  garrison  excepted,  with 
design  to  have  gone  to  Bristol ;  but  the  plague  was  in 
Bristol,  which  altered  the  measures,  and  changed  the 
course  of  the  king's  designs,  so  he  marched  for 
Worcester  about  the  beginning  of  June  1645.  The 
foot,  with  a  train  of  forty  pieces  of  cannon,  marching 
into  Worcester,  the  horse  stayed  behind  some  time  in 
Gloucestershire. 

The  first  action  our  army  did,  was  to  raise  the 
siege  of  Chester ;  Sir  William  Brereton  had  besieged 
it,  or  rather  blocked  it  up,  and  when  his  Majesty  came 
to  Worcester,  he  sent  Prince  Rupert  with  4000  horse 
and  dragoons,  with  orders  to  join  some  foot  out  of 
Wales,  to  raise  the  siege ;  but  Sir  William  thought 
fit  to  withdraw,  and  not  stay  for  them,  and  the  town 
was  freed  without  fighting.  The  governor  took  care 
in  this  interval  to  furnish  himself  with  all  things 
necessary  for  another  siege ;  and,  as  for  ammunition 
and  other  necessaries,  he  was  in  no  want. 

I  was  sent  with  a  party  into  Staffordshire,  with 
design  to  intercept  a  convoy  of  stores  coming  from 
London,  for  the  use  of  Sir  William  Brereton  ;  but 
they  having  some  notice  of  the  design,  stopped,  and 
went  out  of  the  road  to  Burton-upon- Trent,  and  so 
I  missed  them ;  but  that  we  might  not  come  back 
quite  empty,  we  attacked  Hawkesley  House,  and  took 
it,  where  we  got  good  booty,  and  brought  eighty 
prisoners  back  to  Worcester.  From  Worcester  the 
king  advanced  into  Shropshire,  and  took  his  head- 
quarters at  Bridgnorth.  This  was  a  very  happy 
march  of  the  king's,  and  had  his  Majesty  proceeded, 
he  had  certainly  cleared  the  north  once  more  of  his 


264     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

enemies,  for  the  country  was  generally  for  him.  At 
his  advancing  so  far  as  Bridgnorth,  Sir  William 
Brereton  fled  up  into  Lancashire ;  the  Scots  brigades 
who  were  with  him  retreated  into  the  north,  while 
yet  the  king  was  above  forty  miles  from  them,  and  all 
things  lay  open  for  conquest.  The  new  generals, 
Fairfax  and  Cromwell,  lay  about  Oxford,  preparing 
as  if  they  would  besiege  it,  and  gave  the  king's  army 
so  much  leisure,  that  his  Majesty  might  have  been  at 
Newcastle  before  they  could  have  been  half  way  to 
him.  But  Heaven,  when  the  ruin  of  a  person  or 
party  is  determined,  always  so  infatuates  their  counsels 
as  to  make  them  instrumental  to  it  themselves. 

The  king  let  slip  this  great  opportunity,  as  some 
thought,  intending  to  break  into  the  associated  counties 
of  Northampton,  Cambridge,  Norfolk,  where  he  had 
some  interests  forming.  What  the  design  was,  we 
knew  not,  but  the  king  turns  eastward,  and  marches 
into  Leicestershire,  and  having  treated  the  country 
but  very  indifferently,  as  having  deserved  no  better  of 
us,  laid  siege  to  Leicester. 

This  was  but  a  short  siege ;  for  the  king,  resolving 
not  to  lose  time,  fell  on  with  his  great  guns,  and  having 
beaten  down  their  works,  our  foot  entered,  after  a 
vigorous  resistance,  and  took  the  town  by  storm. 
There  was  some  blood  shed  here,  the  town  being 
carried  by  assault ;  but  it  was  their  own  faults ;  for 
after  the  town  was  taken,  the  soldiers  and  townsmen 
obstinately  fought  us  in  the  market-place;  insomuch 
that  the  horse  was  called  to  enter  the  town  to  clear 
the  streets.  But  this  was  not  all ;  I  was  commanded 
to  advance  with  these  horse,  being  three  regiments, 
and  to  enter  the  town  ;  the  foot,  who  were  engaged  in 
the  streets,  crying  out,  "  Horse,  horse."  Immedi- 
ately I  advanced  to  the  gate,  for  we  were  drawn  up 
about  musket-shot  from  the  works,  to  have  supported 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     265 

our  foot  in  case  of  a  sally.  Having  seized  the  gate, 
I  placed  a  guard  of  horse  there,  with  orders  to  let 
nobody  pass  in  or  out,  and  dividing  my  troops,  rode 
up  by  two  ways  towards  the  market-place.  The 
garrison  defending  themselves  in  the  market-place 
and  in  the  churchyard  with  great  obstinacy,  killed  us 
a  great  many  men ;  but  as  soon  as  our  horse  appeared 
they  demanded  quarter,  which  our  foot  refused  them 
in  the  first  heat,  as  is  frequent  in  all  nations,  in  like 
cases,  till  at  last  they  threw  down  their  arms,  and 
yielded  at  discretion ;  and  then  I  can  testify  to  the 
world,  that  fair  quarter  was  given  them.  I  am  the 
more  particular  in  this  relation,  having  been  an  eye- 
witness of  the  action,  because  the  king  was  reproached 
in  all  the  public  libels,  with  which  those  times  abounded, 
for  having  put  a  great  many  to  death,  and  hanged  the 
committee  of  the  Parliament,  and  some  Scots,  in  cold 
blood,  which  was  a  notorious  forgery ;  and  as  I  am 
sure  there  was  no  such  thing  done,  so  I  must  acknow- 
ledge I  never  saw  any  inclination  in  his  Majesty  to 
cruelty,  or  to  act  anything  which  was  not  practised 
by  the  general  laws  of  war,  and  by  men  of  honour  in 
all  nations. 

But  the  matter  of  fact,  in  respect  to  the  garrison, 
was  as  I  have  related ;  and,  if  they  had  thrown  down 
their  arms  sooner,  they  had  had  mercy  sooner ;  but  it 
was  not  for  a  conquering  army,  entering  a  town  by 
storm,  to  offer  conditions  of  quarter  in  the  streets. 

Another  circumstance  was,  that  a  greaty  many  of  the 
inhabitants,  both  men  and  women,  were  killed,  which 
is  most  true ;  and  the  case  was  thus  :  the  inhabitants, 
to  show  their  over-forward  zeal  to  defend  the  town, 
fought  in  the  breach ;  nay,  the  very  women,  to  the 
honour  of  the  Leicester  ladies,  if  they  like  it,  officiously 
did  their  parts ;  and  after  the  town  was  taken,  and 
when,  if  they  had  had  any  brains  in  their  zeal,  they 


266     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

would  have  kept  their  houses,  and  been  quiet,  they 
fired  upon  our  men  out  of  their  windows,  and  from 
the  tops  of  their  houses,  and  threw  tiles  upon  their 
heads ;  and  I  had  several  of  my  men  wounded  so,  and 
seven  or  eight  killed.  This  exasperated  us  to  the  last 
degree ;  and,  finding  one  house  better  manned  than 
ordinary,  and  many  shot  fired  at  us  out  of  the  windows, 
I  caused  my  men  to  attack  it,  resolved  to  make  them 
an  example  for  the  rest ;  which  they  did,  and  break- 
ing open  the  doors,  they  killed  all  they  found  there, 
without  distinction  ;  and  I  appeal  to  the  world  if  they 
were  to  blame.  If  the  Parliament  committee,  or  the 
Scots  deputies  were  here,  they  ought  to  have  been 
quiet,  since  the  town  was  taken ;  but  they  began  with 
us,  and,  I  think,  brought  it  upon  themselves.  This  is 
the  whole  case,  so  far  as  came  within  my  knowledge, 
for  which  his  Majesty  was  so  much  abused. 

We  took  here  Colonel  Gray  and  Captain  Hacker, 
and  about  300  prisoners,  and  about  300  more  were 
killed.  This  was  the  last  day  of  May  1645. 

His  Majesty  having  given  over  Oxford  for  lost, 
continued  here  some  days,  reviewed  the  town,  ordered 
the  fortifications  to  be  augmented,  and  prepares  to 
make  it  the  seat  of  war.  But  the  Parliament,  roused 
at  this  appearance  of  the  king's  army,  orders  their 
general  to  raise  the  siege  of  Oxford,  where  the  garrison 
had,  in  a  sally,  ruined  some  of  their  works,  and  killed 
them  1 50  men,  taking  several  prisoners,  and  carrying 
them  with  them  into  the  city ;  and  orders  him  to 
march  towards  Leicester,  to  observe  the  king. 

The  king  had  now  a  small,  but  gallant  army,  all 
brave  tried  soldiers,  and  seemed  eager  to  engage  the 
new-modelled  army;  and  his  Majesty,  hearing  that 
Sir  Thomas  Fairfax,  having  raised  the  siege  of  Oxford, 
advanced  towards  him,  fairly  saves  him  the  trouble  of 
a  long  march,  and  meets  him  half  way. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     267 

The  army  lay  at  Daventry,  and  Fairfax  at  Tow- 
cester,  about  eight  miles  off.  Here  the  king  sends  away 
600  horse,  with  3000  head  of  cattle,  to  relieve  his 
people  in  Oxford ;  the  cattle  he  might  have  spared 
better  than  the  men.  The  king  having  thus  victualled 
Oxford,  changes  his  resolution  of  fighting  Fairfax, 
to  whom  Cromwell  was  now  joined  with  4000  men, 
or  was  within  a  day's  march,  and  marches  northward. 
This  was  unhappy  counsel,  because  late  given.  Had 
we  marched  northward  at  first,  we  had  done  it ;  but 
thus  it  was.  Now  we  marched  with  a  triumphing 
enemy  at  our  heels,  and  at  Naseby  their  advanced 
parties  attacked  our  rear.  The  king,  upon  this,  alters 
his  resolution  again,  and  resolves  to  fight,  and  at 
midnight  calls  us  up  at  Harborough  to  come  to  a 
council  of  war.  Fate  and  the  king's  opinion  deter- 
mined the  council  of  war;  and  'twas  resolved  to  fight. 
Accordingly  the  van,  in  which  was  Prince  Rupert's 
brigade  of  horse,  of  which  my  regiment  was  a  part, 
countermarched  early  in  the  morning. 

By  five  o'clock  in  the  morning,  the  whole  army, 
in  order  of  battle,  began  to  descry  the  enemy  from  the 
rising  grounds,  about  a  mile  from  Naseby,  and  moved 
towards  them.  They  were  drawn  up  on  a  little  ascent 
in  a  large  common  fallow  field,  in  one  line  extended 
from  one  side  of  the  field  to  the  other,  the  field 
something  more  than  a  mile  over,  our  army  in  the  same 
order,  in  one  line,  with  the  reserve. 

The  king  led  the  main  battle  of  foot,  Prince  Rupert 
the  right  wing  of  the  horse,  and  Sir  Marmaduke 
Langdale  the  left.  Of  the  enemy  Fairfax  and  Skippon 
led  the  body,  Cromwell  and  Rossiter  the  right,  and 
Ireton  the  left,  the  numbers  of  both  armies  so  equal, 
as  not  to  differ  500  men,  save  that  the  king  had  most 
horse  by  about  1000,  and  Fairfax  mostfoot  byabout  500. 
The  number  was  in  each  army  about  18,000  men. 


268     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

The  armies  coming  close  up,  the  wings  engaged  first. 
The  prince  with  his  right  wing  charged  with  his 
wonted  fury,  and  drove  all  the  Parliament's  wing  of 
horse,  one  division  excepted,  clear  out  of  the  field ; 
Ireton,  who  commanded  this  wing,  give  him  his  due, 
rallied  often,  and  fought  like  a  lion  ;  but  our  wing 
bore  down  all  before  them,  and  pursued  them  with  a 
terrible  execution. 

Ireton  seeing  one  division  of  his  horse  left,  repaired 
to  them,  and  keeping  his  ground,  fell  foul  of  a  brigade 
of  our  foot,  who  coming  up  to  the  head  of  the  line,  he 
like  a  madman  charges  them  with  his  horse.  But 
they  with  their  pikes  tore  him  to  pieces  ;  so  that  this 
division  was  entirely  ruined.  Ireton  himself,  thrust 
through  the  thigh  with  a  pike,  wounded  in  the  face 
with  a  halberd,  was  unhorsed  and  taken  prisoner. 

Cromwell,  who  commanded  the  Parliament's  right 
wing,  charged  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale  with  extra- 
ordinary fury,  but  he,  an  old  tried  soldier,  stood  firm, 
and  received  the  charge  with  equal  gallantry,  exchang- 
ing all  their  shot,  carabines  and  pistols,  and  then  fell 
on  sword  in  hand.  Rossiter  and  Whalley  had  the 
better  on  the  point  of  the  wing,  and  routed  two  divisions 
of  horse,  pushed  them  behind  the  reserves,  where  they 
rallied  and  charged  again,  but  were  at  last  defeated  ; 
the  rest  of  the  horse,  now  charged  in  the  flank,  retreated 
fighting,  and  were  pushed  behind  the  reserves  of  foot. 

While  this  was  doing  the  foot  engaged  with  equal 
fierceness,  and  for  two  hours  there  was  a  terrible  fire. 
The  king's  foot,  backed  with  gallant  officers,  and  full 
of  rage  at  the  rout  of  their  horse,  bore  down  the 
enemy's  brigade  led  by  Skippon.  The  old  man, 
wounded,  bleeding,  retreats  to  their  reserves.  All 
the  foot,  except  the  general's  brigade,  were  thus  driven 
into  the  reserves,  where  their  officers  rallied  them,  and 
bring  them  on  to  a  fresh  charge ;  and  here  the  horse, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     269 

having  driven  our  horse  above  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from 
the  foot,  face  about,  and  fall  in  on  the  rear  of  the  foot. 

Had  our  right  wing  done  thus,  the  day  had  been 
secured ;  but  Prince  Rupert,  according  to  his  custom, 
following  the  flying  enemy,  never  concerned  himself 
with  the  safety  of  those  behind ;  and  yet  he  returned 
sooner  than  he  had  done  in  like  cases  too.  At  our 
return  we  found  all  in  confusion,  our  foot  broken,  all 
but  one  brigade,  which,  though  charged  in  the  front, 
flank,  and  rear,  could  not  be  broken  till  Sir  Thomas 
Fairfax  himself  came  up  to  the  charge  with  fresh  men, 
and  then  they  were  rather  cut  in  pieces  than  beaten, 
for  they  stood  with  their  pikes  charged  every  way  to 
the  last  extremity. 

In  this  condition,  at  the  distance  of  a  quarter  of  a 
mile,  we  saw  the  king  rallying  his  horse,  and  preparing 
to  renew  the  fight ;  and  our  wing  of  horse  coming  up 
to  him,  gave  him  opportunity  to  draw  up  a  large  body 
of  horse,  so  large  that  all  the  enemy's  horse  facing  us 
stood  still  and  looked  on,  but  did  not  think  fit  to 
charge  us  till  their  foot,  who  had  entirely  broken 
our  main  battle,  were  put  into  order  again,  and  brought 
up  to  us. 

The  officers  about  the  king  advised  his  Majesty 
rather  to  draw  off;  for,  since  our  foot  were  lost,  it 
would  be  too  much  odds  to  expose  the  horse  to  the 
fury  of  their  whole  army,  and  would  but  be  sacrificing 
his  best  troops  without  any  hopes  of  success.  The 
king,  though  with  great  regret  at  the  loss  of  his  foot, 
yet  seeing  there  was  no  other  hope,  took  this  advice, 
and  retreated  in  good  order  to  Harborough,  and  from 
thence  to  Leicester. 

This  was  the  occasion  of  the  enemy  having  so  great 
a  number  of  prisoners ;  for  the  horse  being  thus  gone 
off,  the  foot  had  no  means  to  make  their  retreat,  and 
were  obliged  to  yield  themselves.  Commissary-General 


270     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 


Ireton  being  taken  by  a  captain  of  foot,  makes  the 
captain  his  prisoner,  to  save  his  life,  and  gives  him  his 
liberty  for  his  courtesy  before. 

Cromwell  and  Rossiter,  with  all  the  enemy's  horse, 
followed  us  as  far  as  Leicester,  and  killed  all  that  they 
could  lay  hold  on  straggling  from  the  body,  but  durst 
not  attempt  to  charge  us  in  a  body.  The  king,  ex- 
pecting the  enemy  would  come  to  Leicester,  removes 
to  Ashby-de-la-Zouch,  where  we  had  some  time  to 
re-collect  ourselves. 

This  was  the  most  fatal  action  of  the  whole  war, 
not  so  much  for  the  loss  of  our  cannon,  ammunition, 
and  baggage,  of  which  the  enemy  boasted  so  much, 
but  as  it  was  impossible  for  the  king  ever  to  retrieve 
it.  The  foot,  the  best  that  ever  he  was  master  of, 
could  never  be  supplied  ;  his  army  in  the  west  was  ex- 
posed to  certain  ruin,  the  north  over-run  with  the  Scots ; 
in  short,  the  case  grew  desperate,  and  the  king  was 
once  upon  the  point  of  bidding  us  all  disband,  and  shift 
for  ourselves. 

We  lost  in  this  fight  not  above  2000  slain,  and  the 
Parliament  near  as  many,  but  the  prisoners  were  a  great 
number ;  the  whole  body  of  foot  being,  as  I  have  said, 
dispersed,  there  were  4500  prisoners,  besides  400 
officers,  2000  horses,  12  pieces  of  cannon,  40  barrels 
of  powder,  all  the  king's  baggage,  coaches,  most 
of  his  servants,  and  his  secretary,  with  his  cabinet  of 
letters,  of  which  the  Parliament  made  great  improve- 
ment, and  basely  enough  caused  his  private  letters — 
between  his  Majesty  and  the  queen,  her  Majesty's 
letters  to  the  king,  and  a  great  deal  of  such  stuff — to 
be  printed. 

After  this  fatal  blow,  being  retreated,  as  I  have  said, 
to  Ashby-de-la-Zouch  in  Leicestershire,  the  king 
ordered  us  to  divide ;  his  Majesty,  with  a  body  of 
horse,  about  3000,  went  to  Lichfield,  and  through 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     271 

Cheshire  into  North  Wales,  and  Sir  Marmaduke  Lang- 
dale,  with  about  2500,  went  to  Newark. 

The  king  remained  in  Wales  for  several  months ; 
and  though  the  length  of  the  war  had  almost  drained 
that  country  of  men,  yet  the  king  raised  a  great  many 
men  there,  recruited  his  horse  regiments,  and  got  to- 
gether six  or  seven  regiments  of  foot,  which  seemed  to 
look  like  the  beginning  of  a  new  army. 

I  had  frequent  discourses  with  his  Majesty  in  this 
low  ebb  of  his  affairs,  and  he  would  often  wish  he  had 
not  exposed  his  army  at  Naseby.  I  took  the  freedom 
once  to  make  a  proposition  to  his  Majesty,  which,  if 
it  had  taken  effect,  I  verily  believe  would  have  given  a 
new  turn  to  his  affairs ;  and  that  was,  at  once  to  slight 
all  his  garrisons  in  the  kingdom,  and  give  private  orders 
to  all  the  soldiers  in  every  place,  to  join  in  bodies,  and 
meet  at  two  general  rendezvous,  which  I  would  have 
appointed  to  be,  one  at  Bristol,  and  one  at  West  Chester. 
I  demonstrated  how  easily  all  the  forces  might  reach 
these  two  places ;  and  both  being  strong  and  wealthy 
places,  and  both  seaports,  he  would  have  a  free  com- 
munication by  sea  with  Ireland,  and  with  his  friends 
abroad  ;  and  having  Wales  entirely  his  own,  he  might 
yet  have  an  opportunity  to  make  good  terms  for  him- 
self, or  else  have  another  fair  field  with  the  enemy. 

Upon  a  fair  calculation  of  his  troops  in  several  gar- 
risons and  small  bodies  dispersed  about,  I  convinced 
the  king,  by  his  own  accounts,  that  he  might  have  two 
complete  armies,  each  of  25,000  foot,  8000  horse,  and 
2000  dragoons  ;  that  the  Lord  Goring  and  the  Lord 
Hopton  might  ship  all  their  forces,  and  come  by  sea  in 
two  tides,  and  be  with  him  in  a  shorter  time  than  the 
enemy  could  follow.  With  two  such  bodies  he  might 
face  the  enemy,  and  make  a  day  of  it ;  but  now  his 
men  were  only  sacrificed,  and  eaten  up  by  piecemeal 
in  a  party-war,  and  spent  their  lives  and  estates  to  do 


272     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

him  no  service.  That  if  the  Parliament  garrisoned 
the  towns  and  castles  he  should  quit,  they  would  lessen 
their  army,  and  not  dare  to  see  him  in  the  field ;  and 
if  they  did  not,  but  left  them  open,  then  'twould  be  no 
loss  to  him,  but  he  might  possess  them  as  often  as  he 
pleased. 

This  advice  I  pressed  with  such  arguments,  that  the 
king  was  once  going  to  despatch  orders  for  the  doing 
it ;  but  to  be  irresolute  in  counsel  is  always  the  com- 
panion of  a  declining  fortune ;  the  king  was  doubtful, 
and  could  not  resolve  until  it  was  too  late. 

And  yet,  though  the  king's  forces  were  very  low, 
his  Majesty  was  resolved  to  make  one  adventure  more, 
and  it  was  a  strange  one  ;  for,  with  but  a  handful  of 
men,  he  made  a  desperate  march,  almost  250  miles  in 
the  middle  of  the  whole  kingdom,  compassed  about 
with  armies  and  parties  innumerable,  traversed  the 
heart  of  his  enemy's  country,  entered  their  associated 
counties,  where  no  army  had  ever  yet  come,  and  in 
spite  of  all  their  victorious  troops  facing  and  following 
him,  alarmed  even  London  itself  and  returned  safe  to 
Oxford. 

His  Majesty  continued  in  Wales  from  the  battle  at 
Naseby  till  the  5th  or  6th  of  August,  and  till  he  had 
an  account  from  all  parts  of  the  progress  of  his  enemies, 
and  the  posture  of  his  own  affairs. 

Here  we  found,  that  the  enemy  being  hard  pressed 
in  Somersetshire  by  the  Lord  Goring,  and  Lord 
Hopton's  forces,  who  had  taken  Bridgewater,  and 
distressed  Taunton,  which  was  now  at  the  point  of 
surrender,  they  had  ordered  Fairfax  and  Cromwell, 
and  the  whole  army,  to  march  westward  to  relieve  the 
town ;  which  they  did,  and  Goring's  troops  were 
worsted,  and  himself  wounded  at  the  fight  at  Lang- 
port. 

The  Scots,  who  were  always  the  dead  weight  upon 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     273 

the  king's  affairs,  having  no  more  work  to  do  in  the 
north,  were,  at  the  Parliament's  desire,  advanced 
southward,  and  then  ordered  away  towards  South 
Wales,  and  were  set  down  to  the  siege  of  Hereford. 
Here  this  famous  Scotch  army  spent  several  months  in 
a  fruitless  siege,  ill  provided  of  ammunition,  and  worse 
with  money ;  and  having  sat  near  three  months  before 
the  town,  and  done  little  but  eaten  up  the  country 
round  them,  upon  the  repeated  accounts  of  the 
progress  of  the  Marquis  of  Montrose  in  that  kingdom, 
and  pressing  instances  of  their  countrymen,  they 
resolved  to  raise  their  siege,  and  go  home  to  relieve 
their  friends. 

The  king,  who  was  willing  to  be  rid  of  the  Scots, 
upon  good  terms,  and  therefore  to  hasten  them,  and 
lest  they  should  pretend  to  push  on  the  siege  to  take 
the  town  first,  gives  it  out,  that  he  was  resolved  with 
all  his  forces  to  go  into  Scotland,  and  join  Montrose ; 
and  so  having  secured  Scotland,  to  renew  the  war  from 
thence. 

And  accordingly  his  Majesty  marches  northwards, 
with  a  body  of  4000  horse ;  and,  had  the  king  really 
done  this,  and  with  that  body  of  horse  marched  away 
(for  he  had  the  start  of  all  his  enemies,  by  above  a 
fortnight's  march),  he  had  then  had  the  fairest  oppor- 
tunity for  a  general  turn  of  all  his  affairs,  that  he  ever 
had  in  all  the  latter  part  of  this  war.  For  Montrose, 
a  gallant  daring  soldier,  who  from  the  least  shadow 
of  force  in  the  farthest  corner  of  this  country,  had, 
rolling  like  a  snowball,  spread  all  over  Scotland, 
was  come  into  the  south  parts,  and  had  summoned 
Edinburgh,  frighted  away  their  statesmen,  beaten  their 
soldiers  at  Dundee  and  other  places ;  and  letters  and 
messengers  in  the  heels  of  one  another,  repeated  their 
cries  to  their  brethren  in  England,  to  lay  before  them 
the  sad  condition  of  the  country,  and  to  hasten  the 

s 


274     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

army  to  their  relief.  The  Scots  lords  of  the  enemy's 
party  fled  to  Berwick,  and  the  chancellor  of  Scotland 
goes  himself  to  General  Leslie,  to  press  him  for  help. 

In  this  extremity  of  affairs  Scotland  lay  when  we 
marched  out  of  Wales.  The  Scots,  at  the  siege  of 
Hereford,  hearing  the  king  was  gone  northward  with 
his  horse,  conclude  he  was  gone  directly  for  Scotland, 
and  immediately  send  Leslie  with  4000  horse  and  foot 
to  follow,  but  did  not  yet  raise  the  siege.  But  the  king, 
still  irresolute,  turns  away  to  the  eastward,  and  comes 
to  Lichfield,  where  he  showed  his  resentments  at 
Colonel  Hastings  for  his  easy  surrender  of  Leicester. 

In  this  march  the  enemy  took  heart.  We  had 
troops  of  horse  on  every  side  upon  us  like  hounds 
started  at  a  fresh  stag.  Leslie,  with  the  Scots,  and 
a  strong  body  followed  in  our  rear,  Major-General 
Poyntz,  Sir  John  Gell,  Colonel  Rossiter,  and  others  in 
our  way;  they  pretended  to  be  10,000  horse,  and  yet 
never  durst  face  us.  The  Scots  made  one  attempt 
upon  a  troop  which  stayed  a  little  behind,  and  took 
some  prisoners ;  but  when  a  regiment  of  our  horse  faced 
them  they  retired.  At  a  village  near  Lichfield  another 
party  of  about  1000  horse  attacked  my  regiment.  We 
were  on  the  left  of  the  army,  and  at  a  little  too  far  a 
distance.  I  happened  to  be  with  the  king  at  that  time, 
and  my  lieutenant-colonel  with  me,  so  that  the  major 
had  charge  of  the  regiment.  He  made  a  very  hand- 
some defence,  but  sent  messengers  for  speedy  relief. 
We  were  on  a  march,  and  therefore  all  ready,  and  the 
king  orders  me  a  regiment  of  dragoons  and  300  horse, 
and  the  body  halted  to  bring  us  off,  not  knowing  how 
strong  the  enemy  might  be.  When  I  came  to  the 
place  I  found  my  major  hard  laid  to,  but  fighting 
like  a  lion.  The  enemy  had  broke  in  upon  him  in 
two  places,  and  had  routed  one  troop,  cutting  them  off 
from  the  body,  and  had  made  them  all  prisoners. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     275 

Upon  this  I  fell  in  with  the  300  horse,  and  cleared 
my  major  from  a  party  who  charged  him  in  the  flank ; 
the  dragoons  immediately  lighting,  one  party  of  them 
comes  up  on  my  wing,  and  saluting  the  enemy  with 
their  muskets,  put  them  to  a  stand,  the  other  party  of 
dragoons  wheeling  to  the  left  endeavouring  to  get 
behind  them.  The  enemy,  perceiving  they  should  be 
overpowered,  retreated  in  as  good  order  as  they  could, 
but  left  us  most  of  our  prisoners,  and  about  thirty  of 
their  own.  We  lost  about  fifteen  of  our  men,  and  the 
enemy  about  forty,  chiefly  by  the  fire  of  our  dragoons 
in  their  retreat. 

In  this  posture  we  continued  our  march  ;  and  though 
the  king  halted  at  Lichfield — which  was  a  dangerous 
article,  having  so  many  of  the  enemy's  troops  upon  his 
hands,  and  this  time  gave  them  opportunity  to  get  into 
a  body — yet  the  Scots,  with  their  General  Leslie, 
resolving  for  the  north,  the  rest  of  the  troops  were  not 
able  to  face  us,  till,  having  ravaged  the  enemy's  country 
through  Staffordshire,  Warwick,  Leicester,  and  Not- 
tinghamshire, we  came  to  the  leaguer  before  Newark. 

The  king  was  once  more  in  the  mind  to  have  gone 
into  Scotland,  and  called  a  council  of  war  to  that  pur- 
pose ;  but  then  it  was  resolved  by  all  hands  that  it 
would  be  too  late  to  attempt  it,  for  the  Scots  and 
Major- General  Poyntz  were  before  us,  and  several 
strong  bodies  of  horse  in  our  rear ;  and  there  was  no 
venturing  now,  unless  any  advantage  presented  to  rout 
one  of  those  parties  which  attended  us. 

Upon  these  and  like  considerations  we  resolved  for 
Newark  ;  on  our  approach  the  forces  which  blocked  up 
that  town  drew  off,  being  too  weak  to  oppose  us,  for 
the  king  was  now  above  5000  horse  and  dragoons, 
besides  300  horse  and  dragoons  he  took  with  him  from 
Newark. 

We  halted  at  Newark  to  assist  the  garrison,  or  give 


276     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

them  time  rather  to  furnish  themselves  from  the  country 
with  what  they  wanted,  which  they  were  very  diligent 
in  doing  ;  for  in  two  days'  time  they  filled  a  large  island 
which  lies  under  the  town,  between  the  two  branches 
of  the  Trent,  with  sheep,  oxen,  cows,  and  horses,  an 
incredible  number ;  and  our  affairs  being  now  something 
desperate,  we  were  not  very  nice  in  our  usage  of  the 
country,  for  really  if  it  was  not  with  a  resolution  both 
to  punish  the  enemy  and  enrich  ourselves,  no  man  can 
give  any  rational  account  why  this  desperate  journey 
was  undertaken.  'Tis  certain  the  Newarkers,  in  the 
respite  they  gained  by  our  coming,  got  above  ^50,000 
from  the  country  round  them  in  corn,  cattle,  money, 
and  other  plunder. 

From  hence  we  broke  into  Lincolnshire,  and  the 
king  lay  at  Belvoir  Castle,  and  from  Belvoir  Castle  to 
Stamford.  The  swiftness  of  our  march  was  a  terrible 
surprise  to  the  enemy ;  for  our  van  being  at  a  village 
on  the  great  road  called  Stilton,  the  country  people 
fled  into  the  Isle  of  Ely,  and  every  way,  as  if  all  was 
lost.  Indeed  our  dragoons  treated  the  country  very 
coarsely,  and  all  our  men  in  general  made  themselves 
rich.  Between  Stilton  and  Huntingdon  we  had  a 
small  bustle  with  some  of  the  associated  troops  of  horse, 
but  they  were  soon  routed,  and  fled  to  Huntingdon, 
where  they  gave  such  an  account  of  us  to  their  fellows 
that  they  did  not  think  fit  to  stay  for  us,  but  left  their 
foot  to  defend  themselves  as  well  as  they  could. 

While  this  was  doing  in  the  van  a  party  from  Bur- 
leigh  House,  near  Stamford,  the  seat  of  the  Earl  of 
Exeter,  pursued  four  troops  of  our  horse,  who,  straggling 
towards  Peterborough,  and  committing  some  disorders 
there,  were  surprised  before  they  could  get  into  a 
posture  of  fighting ;  and  encumbered,  as  I  suppose, 
with  their  plunder,  they  were  entirely  routed,  lost  most 
of  their  horses,  and  were  forced  to  come  away  on  foot ; 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     277 

but  finding  themselves  in  this  condition,  they  got  in  a 
body  into  the  enclosures,  and  in  that  posture  jturning 
dragoons,  they  lined  the  hedges,  and  fired  upon  the 
enemy  with  their  carabines.  This  way  of  fighting, 
though  not  very  pleasant  to  troopers,  put  the  enemy's 
horse  to  some  stand,  and  encouraged  our  men  to  venture 
into  a  village,  where  the  enemy  had  secured  forty  of 
their  horse ;  and  boldly  charging  the  guard,  they  beat 
them  off,  and  recovering  those  horses,  the  rest  made 
their  retreat  good  to  Wansford  Bridge;  but  we  lost 
near  100  horses,  and  about  twelve  of  our  men  taken 
prisoners. 

The  next  day  the  king  took  Huntingdon ;  the  foot 
which  were  left  in  the  town,  as  I  observed  by  their 
horse,  had  posted  themselves  at  the  foot  of  the  bridge, 
and  fortified  the  pass,  with  such  things  as  the  haste  and 
shortness  of  the  time  would  allow  ;  and  in  this  posture 
they  seemed  resolute  to  defend  themselves.  I  confess, 
had  they  in  time  planted  a  good  force  here,  they  might 
have  put  a  full  stop  to  our  little  army ;  for  the  river  is 
large  and  deep,  the  country  on  the  left  marshy,  full  of 
drains  and  ditches,  and  unfit  for  horse,  and  we  must 
have  either  turned  back,  or  took  the  right  hand  into 
Bedfordshire ;  but  here  not  being  above  400  foot,  and 
they  forsaken  of  their  horse,  the  resistance  they  made 
was  to  no  other  purpose  than  to  give  us  occasion  to  knock 
them  on  the  head,  and  plunder  the  town. 

However,  they  defended  the  bridge,  as  I  have  said, 
and  opposed  our  passage.  I  was  this  day  in  the  van, 
and  our  forlorn  having  entered  Huntingdon  without 
any  great  resistance  till  they  came  to  the  bridge,  finding 
it  barricaded,  they  sent  me  word ;  I  caused  the  troops 
to  halt,  and  rode  up  to  the  forlorn,  to  view  the  counte- 
nance of  the  enemy,  and  found  by  the  posture  they  had 
put  themselves  in,  that  they  resolved  to  sell  us  the 
passage  as  dear  as  they  could. 


278     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

I  sent  to  the  king  for  some  dragoons,  and  gave  him 
account  of  what  I  observed  of  the  enemy,  and  that  I 
judged  them  to  be  1000  men ;  for  I  could  not  particu- 
larly see  their  numbers.  Accordingly  the  king  ordered 
500  dragoons  to  attack  the  bridge,  commanded  by  a 
major ;  the  enemy  had  200  musketeers  placed  on  the 
bridge,  their  barricade  served  them  for  a  breastwork 
on  the  front,  and  the  low  walls  on  the  bridge  served  to 
secure  their  flanks.  Two  bodies  of  their  foot  were 
placed  on  the  opposite  banks  of  the  river,  and  a  reserve 
stood  in  the  highway  on  the  rear.  The  number  of 
their  men  could  not  have  been  better  ordered,  and  they 
wanted  not  courage  answerable  to  the  conduct  of  the 
party.  They  were  commanded  by  one  Bennet,  a  reso- 
lute officer,  who  stood  in  the  front  of  his  men  on  the 
bridge  with  a  pike  in  his  hand. 

Before  we  began  to  fall  on,  the  king  ordered  to  view 
the  river,  to  see  if  it  was  nowhere  passable,  or  any  boat 
to  be  had ;  but  the  river  being  not  fordable,  and  the 
boats  all  secured  on  the  other  side,  the  attack  was 
resolved  on,  and  the  dragoons  fell  on  with  extra- 
ordinary bravery.  The  foot  defended  themselves 
obstinately,  and  beat  off  our  dragoons  twice,  and  though 
Bennet  was  killed  upon  the  spot,  and  after  him  his 
lieutenant,  yet  their  officers  relieving  them  with  fresh 
men,  they  would  certainly  have  beat  us  all  off,  had  not 
a  venturous  fellow,  one  of  our  dragoons,  thrown  himself 
into  the  river,  swam  over,  and,  in  the  midst  of  a  shower 
of  musket-bullets,  cut  the  rope  which  tied  a  great  flat- 
bottom  boat,  and  brought  her  over.  With  the  help  of  this 
boat,  I  got  over  100  troopers  first,  and  then  their  horses, 
and  then  200  more  without  their  horses  ;  and  with  this 
party  fell  in  with  one  of  the  small  bodies  of  foot  that 
were  posted  on  that  side,  and  having  routed  them,  and 
after  them  the  reserve  which  stood  on  the  road,  I  made 
up  to  the  other  party.  They  stood  their  ground,  and 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     279 

having  rallied  the  runaways  of  both  the  other  parties, 
charged  me  with  their  pikes,  and  brought  me  to  a 
retreat ;  but  by  this  time  the  king  had  sent  over  300 
men  more,  and  they  coming  up  to  me  the  foot  retreated. 
Those  on  the  bridge  finding  how  'twas,  and  having  no 
supplies  sent  them,  as  before,  fainted,  and  fled ;  and 
the  dragoons  rushing  forward  most  of  them  were  killed  ; 
about  1 50  of  the  enemy  were  killed,  of  which  all  the 
officers  at  the  bridge,  the  rest  run  away. 

The  town  suffered  for  it,  for  our  men  left  them  little 
of  anything  they  could  carry.  Here  we  halted  and 
raised  contributions,  took  money  of  the  country  and  of 
the  open  towns,  to  exempt  them  from  plunder.  Twice 
we  faced  the  town  of  Cambridge,  and  several  of  our 
officers  advised  his  Majesty  to  storm  it.  But  having 
no  foot,  and  but  1 200  dragoons,  wiser  heads  diverted 
him  from  it,  and  leaving  Cambridge  on  the  left,  we 
marched  to  Woburn,  in  Bedfordshire,  and  our  parties 
raised  money  all  over  the  county  quite  into  Hertford- 
shire, withith  five  miles  of  St  Alban's. 

The  swiftness  of  our  march,  and  uncertainty  which 
way  we  intended,  prevented  all  possible  preparation  to 
oppose  us,  and  we  met  with  no  party  able  to  make  head 
against  us.  From  Woburn  the  king  went  through 
Buckingham  to  Oxford ;  some  of  our  men  straggling 
in  the  villages  for  plunder,  were  often  picked  up  by 
the  enemy.  But  in  all  this  long  march  we  did  not 
lose  200  men,  got  an  incredible  booty,  and  brought 
six  waggons  laden  with  money,  besides  2000  horses 
and  3000  head  of  cattle,  into  Oxford.  From  Oxford 
his  Majesty  moves  again  into  Gloucestershire,  having 
left  about  1 500  of  his  horse  at  Oxford  to  scour  the 
country,  and  raise  contributions,  which  they  did  as  far 
as  Reading. 

Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  was  returned  from  taking 
Bridgewater,  and  was  sat  down  before  Bristol,  in  which 


280     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

Prince  Rupert  commanded  with  a  strong  garrison, 
2500  foot  and  1000  horse.  We  had  not  force  enough 
to  attempt  anything  there.  But  the  Scots,  who  lay 
still  before  Hereford,  were  afraid  of  us,  having  before 
parted  with  all  their  horse  under  Lieutenant-General 
Leslie,  and  but  ill  stored  with  provisions;  and  if  we 
came  on  their  backs,  were  in  a  fair  way  to  be  starved, 
or  made  to  buy  their  provisions  at  the  price  of  their 
blood. 

His  Majesty  was  sensible  of  this,  and  had  we  had 
but  ten  regiments  of  foot,  would  certainly  have  fought 
the  Scots.  But  we  had  no  foot,  or  so  few  as  was  not 
worth  while  to  march  them.  However,  the  king 
marched  to  Worcester,  and  the  Scots,  apprehending 
they  should  be  blocked  up,  immediately  raised  the  siege, 
pretending  it  was  to  go  help  their  brethren  in  Scotland, 
and  away  they  marched  northwards. 

We  picked  up  some  of  their  stragglers,  but  they  were 
so  poor,  had  been  so  ill  paid,  and  so  harassed  at  the 
siege,  that  they  had  neither  money  nor  clothes  ;  and  the 
poor  soldiers  fed  upon  apples  and  roots,  and  ate  the  very 
green  corn  as  it  grew  in  the  fields,  which  reduced  them 
to  a  very  sorry  condition  of  health,  for  they  died  like 
people  infected  with  the  plague. 

'Twas  now  debated  whether  we  should  yet  march 
for  Scotland,  but  two  things  prevented — ( i . )  The 
plague  was  broke  out  there,  and  multitudes  died  of  it, 
which  made  the  king  backward,  and  the  men  more 
backward.  (2.)  The  Marquis  of  Montrose,  having 
routed  a  whole  brigade  of  Leslie's  best  horse,  and 
carried  all  before  him,  wrote  to  his  Majesty  that  he 
did  not  now  want  assistance,  but  was  in  hopes  in  a 
few  days  to  send  a  body  of  foot  into  England  to  his 
Majesty's  assistance.  This  over-confidence  of  his  was 
his  ruin  ;  for,  on  the  contrary,  had  he  earnestly  pressed 
the  king  to  have  marched,  and  fallen  in  with  his  horse, 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     281 

the  king  had  done  it,  and  been  absolutely  master  of 
Scotland  in  a  fortnight's  time ;  but  Montrose  was  too 
confident,  and  defied  them  all,  till  at  last  they  got  their 
forces  together,  and  Leslie  with  his  horse  out  of  England, 
and  worsted  him  in  two  or  three  encounters,  and  then 
never  left  him  till  they  drove  him  out  of  Scotland. 

While  his  Majesty  stayed  at  Worcester,  several 
messengers  came  to  him  from  Cheshire  for  relief, 
being  exceedingly  straitened  by  the  forces  of  the 
Parliament ;  in  order  to  which  the  king  marched,  but 
Shrewsbury  being  in  the  enemy's  hands,  he  was  ob- 
liged to  go  round  by  Ludlow,  where  he  was  joined 
by  some  foot  out  of  Wales.  I  took  this  opportunity 
to  ask  his  Majesty's  leave  to  go  by  Shrewsbury  to  my 
father's,  and,  taking  only  two  servants,  I  left  the  army 
two  days  before  they  marched. 

This  was  the  most  unsoldier-like  action  that  ever  I 
was  guilty  of,  to  go  out  of  the  army  to  pay  a  visit  when 
a  time  of  action  was  just  at  hand  ;  and,  though  I  protest 
I  had  not  the  least  intimation,  no,  not  from  my  own 
thoughts,  that  the  army  would  engage,  at  least  before 
they  came  to  Chester,  before  which  I  intended  to  meet 
them,  yet  it  looked  so  ill,  so  like  an  excuse  or  a  sham 
of  cowardice,  or  disaffection  to  the  cause  and  to  my 
master's  interest,  or  something  I  know  not  what,  that 
I  could  not  bear  to  think  of  it,  nor  never  had  the  heart 
to  see  the  king's  face  after  it. 

From  Ludlow  the  king  marched  to  relieve  Chester. 
Poyntz,who  commanded  the  Parliament's  forces,  follows 
the  king,  with  design  to  join  with  the  forces  before 
Chester,  under  Colonel  Jones,  before  the  king  could 
come  up.  To  that  end  Poyntz  passes  through  Shrews- 
bury the  day  that  the  king  marched  from  Ludlow ;  yet 
the  king's  forces  got  the  start  of  him,  and  forced  him 
to  engage.  Had  the  king  engaged  him  but  three  hours 
sooner,  and  consequently  further  off  from  Chester,  he 


282     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

had  ruined  him,  for  Poyntz's  men,  not  able  to  stand 
the  shock  of  the  king's  horse,  gave  ground,  and  would 
in  half-an-hour  more  have  been  beaten  out  of  the  field  ; 
but  Colonel  Jones,  with  a  strong  party  from  the  camp, 
which  was  within  two  miles,  comes  up  in  the  heat  of 
the  action,  falls  on  in  the  king's  rear,  and  turned  the 
scale  of  the  day.  The  body  was,  after  an  obstinate 
fight,  defeated,  and  a  great  many  gentlemen  of  quality 
killed  and  taken  prisoners.  The  Earl  of  Lichfield 
was  of  the  number  of  the  former,  and  sixty-seven 
officers  of  the  latter,  with  1000  others.  The  king, 
with  about  500  horse,  got  into  Chester,  and  from 
thence  into  Wales,  whither  all  that  could  get  away 
made  up  to  him  as  fast  as  they  could,  but  in  a  bad 
condition. 

This  was  the  last  stroke  they  struck ;  the  rest  of 
the  war  was  nothing  but  taking  all  his  garrisons  from 
him  one  by  one,  till  they  finished  the  war  with  the 
.captivating  his  person,  and  then,  for  want  of  other 
business,  fell  to  fighting  with  one  another. 

I  was  quite  disconsolate  at  the  news  of  this  last 
action,  and  the  more  because  I  was  not  there.  My 
regiment  was  wholly  dispersed,  my  lieutenant-colonel, 
a  gentleman  of  a  good  family,  and  a  near  relation  to  my 
mother,  was  prisoner,  my  major  and  three  captains 
killed,  and  most  of  the  rest  prisoners. 

The  king,  hopeless  of  any  considerable  party  in 
Wales,  Bristol  being  surrendered,  sends  for  Prince 
Rupert  and  Prince  Maurice,  who  came  to  him.  With 
them,  and  the  Lord  Digby,  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale, 
and  a  great  train  of  gentlemen,  his  Majesty  marches 
to  Newark  again,  leaves  1000  horse  with  Sir  William 
Vaughan  to  attempt  the  relief  of  Chester,  in  doing 
whereof  he  was  routed  the  second  time  by  Jones  and 
his  men,  and  entirely  dispersed. 

The  chief  strength  the  king  had  in  these  parts  was  at 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     283 

Newark,  and  the  Parliament  were  very  earnest  with  the 
Scots  to  march  southward  and  to  lay  siege  to  Newark ; 
and  while  the  Parliament  pressed  them  to  it,  and  they 
sat  still  and  delayed  it,  several  heats  began,  and  some  ill 
blood  between  them,  which  afterwards  broke  out  into 
open  war.  The  English  reproached  the  Scots  with 
pretending  to  help  them,  and  really  hindering  their 
affairs.  The  Scots  returned  that  they  came  to  fight 
for  them,  and  are  left  to  be  starved,  and  can  neither  get 
money  nor  clothes.  At  last  they  came  to  this,  the 
Scots  will  come  to  the  siege  i(  the  Parliament  will  send 
them  money,  but  not  before.  However,  as  people 
sooner  agree  in  doing  ill  than  in  doing  well,  they  came 
to  terms,  and  the  Scots  came  with  their  whole  army  to 
the  siege  of  Newark. 

The  king,  foreseeing  the  siege,  calls  his  friends  about 
him,  tells  them  he  sees  his  circumstances  are  such  that 
they  can  help  him  but  little,  nor  he  protect  them,  and 
advises  them  to  separate.  The  Lord  Digby,  with  Sir 
Marmaduke  Langdale,  with  a  strong  body  of  horse, 
attempt  to  get  into  Scotland  to  join  with  Montrose,  who 
was  still  in  the  Highlands,  though  reduced  to  a  low 
ebb,  but  these  gentlemen  are  fallen  upon  on  every  side 
and  routed,  and  at  last,  being  totally  broken  and  dis- 
persed, they  fly  to  the  Earl  of  Derby's  protection  in 
the  Isle  of  Man. 

Prince  Rupert,  Prince  Maurice,  Colonel  Gerard, 
and  above  400  gentlemen,  all  officers  of  horse,  lay  their 
commissions  down,  and  seizing  upon  Wootton  House 
for  a  retreat,  make  proposals  to  the  Parliament  to  leave 
the  kingdom,  upon  their  parole  not  to  return  again  in 
arms  against  the  Parliament,  which  was  accepted,  though 
afterwards  the  prince  declined  it.  I  sent  my  man  post 
to  the  prince  to  be  included  in  this  treaty,  and  for  leave 
for  all  that  would  accept  of  like  conditions,  but  they  had 
given  in  the  list  of  their  names,  and  could  not  alter  it. 


284     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

This  was  a  sad  time.  The  poor  remains  of  the 
king's  fortunes  went  everywhere  to  wreck.  Every 
garrison  of  the  enemy  was  full  of  the  Cavalier  prisoners, 
and  every  garrison  the  king  had  was  beset  with  enemies, 
either  blocked  up  or  besieged.  Goring  and  the  Lord 
Hopton  were  the  only  remainders  of  the  king's  forces 
which  kept  in  a  body,  and  Fairfax  was  pushing  them 
with  all  imaginable  vigour  with  his  whole  army 
about  Exeter  and  other  parts  of  Devonshire  and 
Cornwall. 

In  this  condition  the  king  left  Newark  in  the  night, 
and  got  to  Oxford.  The  king  had  in  Oxford  8000 
men,  and  the  towns  of  Banbury,  Farringdon,  Don- 
nington  Castle,  and  such  places  as  might  have  been 
brought  together  in  twenty-four  hours,  15,000  or 
20,000  men,  with  which,  if  he  had  then  resolved  to 
have  quitted  the  place,  and  collected  the  forces  in 
Worcester,  Hereford,  Lichfield,  Ashby-de-la-Zouch, 
and  all  the  small  castles  and  garrisons  he  had  there- 
abouts, he  might  have  had  near  40,000  men,  might 
have  beaten  the  Scots  from  Newark,  Colonel  Jones 
from  Chester,  and  all,  before  Fairfax,  who  was  in  the 
west,  could  be  able  to  come  to  their  relief.  And  this 
his  Majesty's  friends  in  North  Wales  had  concerted ; 
and,  in  order  to  it,  Sir  Jacob  Ashby  gathered  what 
forces  he  could,  in  our  parts,  and  attempted  to  join  the 
king  at  Oxford,  and  to  have  proposed  it  to  him  ;  but 
Sir  Jacob  was  entirely  routed  at  Stow-on-the-Wold, 
and  taken  prisoner,  and  of  3000  men  not  above  600 
came  to  Oxford. 

All  the  king's  garrisons  dropped  one  by  one;  Here- 
ford, which  had  stood  out  against  the  whole  army  of 
the  Scots,  was  surprised  by  six  men  and  a  lieutenant 
dressed  up  for  country  labourers,  and  a  constable 
pressed  to  work,  who  cut  the  guards  in  pieces,  and  let 
in  a  party  of  the  enemy.  Chester  was  reduced  by 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     285 

famine,  all  the  attempts  the  king  made  to  relieve  it 
being  frustrated. 

Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  routed  the  Lord  Hopton  at 
Torrington,  and  drove  him  to  such  extremities,  that 
he  was  forced  up  into  the  farthest  corner  of  Cornwall. 
The  Lord  Hopton  had  a  gallant  body  of  horse  with 
him  of  nine  brigades,  but  no  foot ;  Fairfax,  a  great 
army. 

Heartless,  and  tired  out  with  continual  ill  news,  and 
ill  success,  I  had  frequent  meetings  with  some  gentle- 
men who  had  escaped  from  the  rout  of  Sir  William 
Vaughan,  and  we  agreed  upon  a  meeting  at  Worcester, 
of  all  the  friends  we  could  get,  to  see  if  we  could  raise 
a  body  fit  to  do  any  service ;  or,  if  not,  to  consider 
what  was  to  be  done.  At  this  meeting  we  had  almost 
as  many  opinions  as  people ;  our  strength  appeared  too 
weak  to  make  any  attempt,  the  game  was  too  far  gone 
in  our  parts  to  be  retrieved ;  all  we  could  make  up  did 
not  amount  to  above  800  horse. 

'Twas  unanimously  agreed  not  to  go  into  the  Parlia- 
ment as  long  as  our  royal  master  did  not  give  up  the 
cause ;  but  in  all  places,  and  by  all  possible  methods, 
to  do  him  all  the  service  we  could.  Some  proposed 
one  thing,  some  another  ;  at  last  we  proposed  getting 
vessels  to  carry  us  to  the  Isle  of  Man  to  the  Earl  of 
Derby,  as  Sir  Marmaduke  Langdale,  Lord  Digby, 
and  others  had  done.  I  did  not  foresee  any  service  it 
would  be  to  the  king's  affairs,  but  I  started  a  proposal 
that,  marching  to  Pembroke  in  a  body,  we  should  there 
seize  upon  all  the  vessels  we  could,  and  embarking 
ourselves,  horses,  and  what  foot  we  could  get,  cross 
the  Severn  Sea,  and  land  in  Cornwall  to  the  assistance 
of  Prince  Charles,  who  was  in  the  army  of  the  Lord 
Hopton,  and  where  only  there  seemed  to  be  any  pos- 
sibility of  a  chance  for  the  remaining  part  of  our 
cause. 


286     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

This  proposal  was  not  without  its  difficulties,  as  how 
to  get  to  the  seaside,  and,  when  there,  what  assur- 
ance of  shipping.  The  enemy,  under  Major-General 
Langhorn,  had  overrun  Wales,  and  'twould  be  next 
to  impossible  to  effect  it. 

We  could  never  carry  our  proposal  with  the  whole 
assembly ;  but,  however,  about  200  of  us  resolved  to 
attempt  it,  and  r_the^  meeting  being  broken  up  without 
coming  to  any  conclusion,  we  had  a  private  meeting 
among  ourselves  to  effect  it. 

We  despatched  private  messengers  to  Swansea  and 
Pembroke,  and  other  places  ;  but  they  all  discouraged 
us  from  the  attempt  that  way,  and  advised  us  to  go 
higher  towards  North  Wales,  where  the  king's  interest 
had  more  friends,  and  the  Parliament  no  forces.  Upon 
this  we  met,  and  resolved,  and  having  sent  several 
messengers  that  way,  one  of  my  men  provided  us  two 
small  vessels  in  a  little  creek  near  Harlech  Castle,  in 
Merionethshire.  We  marched  away  with  what  expedi- 
tion we  could,  and  embarked  in  the  two  vessels  accord- 
ingly. It  was  the  worst  voyage  sure  that  ever  man 
went ;  for  first  we  had  no  manner  of  accommodation 
for  so  many  people,  hay  for  our  horses  we  got  none,  or 
very  little,  but  good  store  of  oats,  which  served  us  for 
our  own  bread  as  well  as  provender  for  the  horses. 

In  this  condition  we  put  off  to  sea,  and  had  a  fair 
wind  all  the  first  night,  but  early  in  the  morning  a 
sudden  storm  drove  us  within  two  or  three  leagues  of 
Ireland.  In  this  pickle,  sea-sick,  our  horses  rolling 
about  upon  one  another,  and  ourselves  stifled  for  want 
of  room,  no  cabins  nor  beds,  very  cold  weather,  and 
very  indifferent  diet,  we  wished  ourselves  ashore  again 
a  thousand  times ;  and  yet  we  were  not  willing  to  go 
ashore  in  Ireland  if  we  could  help  it ;  for  the  rebels 
having  possession  of  every  place,  that  was  just  having 
our  throats  cut  at  once.  Having  rolled  about  at  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     287 

mercy  of  the  winds  all  day,  the  storm  ceasing  in  the 
evening,  we  had  fair  weather  again,  but  wind  enough, 
which  being  large,  in  two  days  and  a  night  we  came 
upon  the  coast  of  Cornwall,  and,  to  our  no  small  com- 
fort, landed  the  next  day  at  St  Ives,  in  the  county  of 
Cornwall. 

We  rested  ourselves  here,  and  sent  an  express  to  the 
Lord  Hopton,  who  was  then  in  Devonshire,  of  our 
arrival,  and  desired  him  to  assign  us  quarters,  and  send 
us  his  farther  orders.  His  lordship  expressed  a  very 
great  satisfaction  at  our  arrival,  and  left  it  to  our  own 
conduct  to  join  him  as  we  saw  convenient. 

We  were  marching  to  join  him,  when  news  came 
that  Fairfax  had  given  him  an  entire  defeat  at  Tor- 
rington.  This  was  but  the  old  story  over  again.  We 
had  been  used  to  ill  news  a  great  while,  and  'twas  the 
less  surprise  to  us. 

Upon  this  news  we  halted  at  Bodmin,  till  we  should 
hear  farther ;  and  it  was  not  long  before  we  saw  a  con- 
firmation of  the  news  before  our  eyes,  for  the  Lord 
Hopton,  with  the  remainder  of  the  horse,  which  he 
had  brought  off  at  Torrington  in  a  very  shattered  con- 
dition, retreated  to  Launceston,  the  first  town  in  Corn- 
wall, and  hearing  that  Fairfax  pursued  him,  came  on 
to  Bodmin.  Hither  he  summoned  all  the  troops  which 
he  had  left,  which,  when  he  had  got  together,  were  a 
fine  body  indeed  of  5000  horse,  but  few  foot  but  what 
were  at  Pendennis,  Barnstaple,  and  other  garrisons. 
These  were  commanded  by  the  Lord  Hopton.  The 
Lord  Goring  had  taken  shipping  for  France  to  get 
relief  a  few  days  before. 

Here  a  grand  council  of  war  was  called,  and  several 
things  were  proposed,  but  as  it  always  is  in  distress, 
people  are  most  irresolute,  so  'twas  here.  Some  were 
for  breaking  through  by  force,  our  number  being 
superior  to  the  enemy's  horse.  To  fight  them  with 


288     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

their  foot  would  be  desperation  and  ridiculous  ;  and  to 
retreat  would  but  be  to  coop  up  themselves  in  a  narrow 
place,  where  at  last  they  must  be  forced  to  fight  upon 
disadvantage,  or  yield  at  mercy.  Others  opposed  this 
as  a  desperate  action,  and  without  probability  of  success, 
and  all  were  of  different  opinions.  I  confess,  when  I 
saw  how  things  were,  I  saw  'twas  a  lost  game,  and 
I  was  for  the  opinion  of  breaking  through,  and  doing 
it  now,  while  the  country  was  open  and  large,  and  not 
being  forced  to  it  when  it  must  be  with  more  disad- 
vantage. But  nothing  was  resolved  on,  and  so  we 
retreated  before  the  enemy.  Some  small  skirmishes 
there  happened  near  Bodmin,  but  none  that  were  very 
considerable. 

'Twas  the  1st  of  March  when  we  quitted  Bodmin, 
and  quartered  at  large  at  Columb,  St  Dennis,  and 
Truro,  and  the  enemy  took  his  quarters  at  Bodmin, 
posting  his  horse  at  the  passes  from  Padstow  on  the 
north,  to  Wadebridge,  Lostwithiel,  and  Fowey,  spread- 
ing so  from  sea  to  sea,  that  now  breaking  through  was 
impossible.  There  was  no  more  room  for  counsel ;  for 
unless  we  had  ships  to  carry  us  off",  we  had  nothing  to 
do  but  when  we  were  fallen  upon,  to  defend  ourselves, 
and  sell  victory  as  dear  as  we  could  to  the  enemies. 

The  Prince  of  Wales  seeing  the  distress  we  were  in, 
and  loth  to  fall  into  the  enemy's  hands,  ships  himself 
on  board  some  vessels  at  Falmouth,  with  about  400 
lords  and  gentlemen.  And  as  I  had  no  command  here 
to  oblige  my  attendance,  I  was  once  going  to  make  one, 
but  my  comrades,  whom  I  had  been  the  principal  occa- 
sion of  bringing  hither,  began  to  take  it  ill,  that  I  would 
leave  them,  and  so  I  resolved  we  would  take  our  fate 
together. 

While  thus  we  had  nothing  before  us  but  a  soldier's 
death,  a  fair  field,  and  a  strong  enemy,  and  people  began 
to  look  one  upon  another,  the  soldiers  asked  how 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     289 

their  officers  looked,  and  the  officers  asked  how  their 
soldiers  looked,  and  every  day  we  expected  to  be  our 
last,  when  unexpectedly  the  enemy's  general  sent  a 
trumpet  to  Truro  to  my  Lord  Hopton,  with  a  very 
handsome  gentlemanlike  offer  : — 

That  since  the  general  could  not  be  ignorant  of  his 
present  condition,  and  that  the  place  he  was  in  could 
not  afford  him  subsistence  or  defence ;  and  especially 
considering  that  the  state  of  our  affairs  were  such,  that 
if  we  should  escape  from  thence  we  could  not  remove 
to  our  advantage,  he  had  thought  good  to  let  us  know, 
that  if  we  would  deliver  up  our  horses  and  arms,  he 
would,  for  avoiding  the  effusion  of  Christian  blood,  or 
the  putting  any  unsoldierly  extremities  upon  us,  allow 
such  honourable  and  safe  conditions,  as  were  rather 
better  than  our  present  circumstances  could  demand, 
and  such  as  should  discharge  him  to  all  the  world,  as  a 
gentleman,  as  a  soldier,  and  as  a  Christian. 

After  this  followed  the  conditions  he  would  give  us, 
which  were  as  follows,  viz. : — That  all  the  soldiery, 
as  well  English  as  foreigners,  should  have  liberty  to  go 
beyond  the  seas,  or  to  their  own  dwellings,  as  they 
pleased ;  and  to  such  as  shall  choose  to  live  at  home, 
protection  for  their  liberty,  and  from  all  violence  and 
plundering  of  soldiers,  and  to  give  them  bag  and  baggage, 
and  all  their  goods,  except  horses  and  arms. 

That  for  officers  in  commissions,  and  gentlemen 
of  quality,  he  would  allow  them  horses  for  themselves 
and  one  servant,  or  more,  suitable  to  their  quality,  and 
such  arms  as  are  suitable  to  gentlemen  of  such  quality 
travelling  in  times  of  peace  ;  and  such  officers  as  would 
go  beyond  sea,  should  take  with  them  their  full  arms 
and  number  of  horses  as  are  allowed  in  the  army  to 
such  officers. 

That  all  the  troopers  shall  receive  on  the  delivery 
of  their  horses,  zos.  a  man  to  carry  them  home ;  and 

T 


290     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

the  general's  pass  and  recommendation  to  any  gentle- 
man who  desires  to  go  to  the  Parliament  to  settle  the 
composition  for  their  estates. 

Lastly,  a  very  honourable  mention  of  the  general, 
and  offer  of  their  mediation  to  the  Parliament,  to  treat 
him  as  a  man  of  honour,  and  one  who  has  been  tender 
of  the  country,  and  behaved  himself  with  all  the  mode- 
ration and  candour  that  could  be  expected  from  an 
enemy. 

Upon  the  unexpected  receipt  of  this  message,  a 
council  of  war  was  called,  and  the  letter  read  ;  no 
man  offered  to  speak  a  word  ;  the  general  moved  it, 
but  every  one  was  loth  to  begin. 

At  last  an  old  colonel  starts  up,  and  asked  the  gene- 
ral what  he  thought  might  occasion  the  writing  this 
letter  ?  The  general  told  him,  he  could  not  tell ;  but 
he  could  tell,  he  was  sure,  of  one  thing,  that  he  knew 
what  was  not  the  occasion  of  it,  viz.,  that  is,  not  any 
want  of  force  in  their  army  to  oblige  us  to  other  terms. 
Then  a  doubt  was  started,  whether  the  king  and  Par- 
liament were  not  in  any  treaty,  which  this  agreement 
might  be  prejudicial  to. 

This  occasioned  a  letter  to  my  Lord  Fairfax,  wherein 
our  general  returning  the  civilities,  and  neither  accept- 
ing nor  refusing  his  proposal,  put  it  upon  his  honour, 
whether  there  was  not  some  agreement  or  concession 
between  his  Majesty  and  the  Parliament,  in  order  to  a 
general  peace,  which  this  treaty  might  be  prejudicial  to, 
or  thereby  be  prejudicial  to  us. 

The  Lord  Fairfax  ingenuously  declared,  he  had 
heard  the  king  had  made  some  concessions,  and  he 
heartily  wished  he  would  make  such  as  would  settle 
the  kingdom  in  peace,  that  Englishmen  might  not 
wound  and  destroy  one  another  ;  but  that  he  de- 
clared he  knew  of  no  treaty  commenced,  nor  any- 
thing passed  which  could  give  us  the  least  shadow  of 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     291 

hope  for  any  advantage  in  not  accepting  his  condi- 
tions ;  at  last  telling  us,  that  though  he  did  not  insult 
over  our  circumstances,  yet  if  we  thought  fit,  upon  any 
such  supposition,  to  refuse  his  offers,  he  was  not  to  seek 
in  his  measures. 

And  it  appeared  so,  for  he  immediately  advanced  his 
forlorns,  and  dispossessed  us  of  two  advanced  quarters, 
and  thereby  straitened  us  yet  more. 

We  had  now  nothing  to  say,  but  treat,  and  our 
general  was  so  sensible  of  our  condition,  that  he  re- 
turned the  trumpet  with  a  safe-conduct  for  commis- 
sioners at  twelve  o'clock  that  night ;  upon  which  a 
cessation  of  arms  was  agreed  on,  we  quitting  Truro  to 
the  Lord  Fairfax,  and  he  left  St  Allen  to  us  to 
keep  our  headquarters. 

The  conditions  were  soon  agreed  on  ;  we  disbanded 
nine  full  brigades  of  horse,  and  all  the  conditions  were 
observed  with  the  most  honour  and  care  by  the  enemy 
that  ever  I  saw  in  my  life. 

Nor  can  I  omit  to  make  very  honourable  mention  of 
this  noble  gentleman,  though  I  did  not  like  his  cause ; 
but  I  never  saw  a  man  of  a  more  pleasant,  calm,  cour- 
teous, downright,  honest  behaviour  in  my  life ;  and 
for  his  courage  and  personal  bravery  in  the  field,  that  we 
had  felt  enough  of.  No  man  in  the  world  had  more 
fire  and  fury  in  him  while  in  action,  or  more  temper 
and  softness  out  of  it.  In  short,  and  I  cannot  do  him 
greater  honour,  he  exceedingly  came  near  the  character 
of  my  foreign  hero,  Gustavus  Adolphus,  and  in  my 
account  is,  of  all  the  soldiers  in  Europe,  the  fittest  to 
be  reckoned  in  the  second  place  of  honour  to  him. 

I  had  particular  occasion  to  see  much  of  his  temper 
in  all  this  action,  being  one  of  the  hostages  given  by 
our  general  for  the  performance  of  the  conditions,  in 
which  circumstance  the  general  did  me  several  times 
the  honour  to  send  to  me  to  dine  with  him ;  and  was 


292     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

exceedingly  pleased  to  discourse  with  me  about  the  pas- 
sages of  the  wars  in  Germany,  which  I  had  served  in, 
he  having  been  at  the  same  time  in  the  Low  Countries 
in  the  service  of  Prince  Maurice  ;  but  I  observed  if  at 
any  time  my  civilities  extended  to  commendations  of 
his  own  actions,  and  especially  to  comparing  him  to 
Gustavus  Adolphus,  he  would  blush  like  a  woman,  and 
be  uneasy,  declining  the  discourse,  and  in  this  he  was 
still  more  like  him. 

Let  no  man  scruple  my  honourable  mention  of  this 
noble  enemy,  since  no  man  can  suspect  me  of  favouring 
the  cause  he  embarked  in,  which  I  served  as  heartily 
against  as  any  man  in  the  army ;  but  I  cannot  conceal 
extraordinary  merit  for  its  being  placed  in  an  enemy. 

This  was  the  end  of  our  making  war,  for  now  we 
were  all  under  parole  never  to  bear  arms  against  the 
Parliament ;  and  though  some  of  us  did  not  keep  our 
word,  yet  I  think  a  soldier's  parole  ought  to  be  the 
most  sacred  in  such  case,  that  a  soldier  may  be  the 
easier  trusted  at  all  times  upon  his  word.  For  my  part, 
I  went  home  fully  contented,  since  I  could  do  my 
royal  master  no  better  service,  that  I  had  come  off  no 
worse. 

The  enemy  going  now  on  in  a  full  current  of  success, 
and  the  king  reduced  to  the  last  extremity,  and  Fairfax, 
by  long  marches,  being  come  back  within  five  miles  of 
Oxford,  his  Majesty,  loth  to  be  cooped  up  in  a  town 
which  could  on  no  account  hold  long  out,  quits  the 
town  in  a  disguise,  leaving  Sir  Thomas  Glemham 
governor,  and  being  only  attended  with  Mr  Ashburn- 
ham  and  one  more,  rides  away  to  Newark,  and  there 
fatally  committed  himself  to  the  honour  and  fidelity  of 
the  Scots  under  General  Leven. 

There  had  been  some  little  bickering  between  the 
Parliament  and  the  Scots  commissioners  concerning  the 
propositions  which  the  Scots  were  for  a  treaty  with  the 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     293 

king  upon,  and  the  Parliament  refused  it.  The  Parlia- 
ment, upon  all  proposals  of  peace,  had  formerly  invited 
the  king  to  come  and  throw  himself  upon  the  honour, 
fidelity,  and  affection  of  his  Parliament.  And  now  the 
king  from  Oxford  offering  to  come  up  to  London  on 
the  protection  of  the  Parliament  for  the  safety  of  his 
person,  they  refused  him,  and  the  Scots  differed  from 
them  in  it,  and  were  for  a  personal  treaty. 

This,  in  our  opinion,  was  the  reason  which  prompted 
the  king  to  throw  himself  upon  the  fidelity  of  the 
Scots,  who  really  by  their  infidelity  had  been  the  ruin 
of  all  his  affairs,  and  now,  by  their  perfidious  breach 
of  honour  and  faith  with  him,  will  be  virtually  and 
mediately  the  ruin  of  his  person. 

The  Scots  were,  as  all  the  nation  beside  them  was, 
surprised  at  the  king's  coming  among  them  ;  the  Par- 
liament began  very  high  with  them,  and  send  an  order 
to  General  Leven  to  send  the  king  to  Warwick  Castle ; 
but  he  was  not  so  hasty  to  part  with  so  rich  a  prize. 
As  soon  as  the  king  came  to  the  general,  he  signs  an 
order  to  Colonel  Bellasis,  the  governor  of  Newark,  to 
surrender  it,  and  immediately  the  Scots  decamp  home- 
wards, carrying  the  king  in  the  camp  with  them,  and 
marching  on,  a  house  was  ordered  to  be  provided  for 
the  king  at  Newcastle. 

And  now  the  Parliament  saw  their  error,  in  refus- 
ing his  Majesty  a  personal  treaty,  which,  if  they  had 
accepted  (their  army  was  not  yet  taught  the  way  of 
huffing  their  masters),  the  kingdom  might  have  been 
settled  in  peace.  Upon  this  the  Parliament  send  to 
General  Leven  to  have  his  Majesty  not  be  sent,  which 
was  their  first  language,  but  be  suffered  to  come  to 
London  to  treat  with  his  Parliament ;  before  it  was, 
"  Let  the  king  be  sent  to  Warwick  Castle;"  now  'tis, 
"To  let  his  Majesty  come  to  London  to  treat  with 
his  people." 


294     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

But  neither  one  or  the  other  would  do  with  the 
Scots ;  but  we  who  knew  the  Scots  best  knew  that 
there  was  one  thing  wouid  do  with  them,  if  the  other 
would  not,  and  that  was  money  ;  and  therefore  our 
hearts  ached  for  the  king. 

The  Scots,  as  I  said,  had  retreated  to  Newcastle 
with  the  king,  and  there  they  quartered  their  whole 
army  at  large  upon  the  country  ;  the  Parliament  voted 
they  had  no  farther  occasion  for  the  Scots,  and  desired 
them  to  go  home  about  their  business.  I  do  not  say 
it  was  in  these  words,  but  in  whatsoever  good  words 
their  messages  might  be  expressed,  this  and  nothing  less 
was  the  English  of  it.  The  Scots  reply,  by  setting 
forth  their  losses,  damages,  and  dues,  the  substance  of 
which  was,  "Pay  us  our  money  and  we  will  be  gone, 
or  else  we  won't  stir."  The  Parliament  call  for  an 
account  of  their  demands,  which  the  Scots  give  in, 
amounting  to  a  million ;  but,  according  to  their  custom, 
and  especially  finding  that  the  army  under  Fairfax 
inclined  gradually  that  way,  fall  down  to  ^500,000, 
and  at  last  to  ^400,000;  but  all  the  while  this  is 
transacting  a  separate  treaty  is  carried  on  at  London 
with  the  commissioners  of  Scotland,  and  afterwards  at 
Edinburgh,  by  which  it  is  given  them  to  understand 
that,  whereas  upon  payment  of  the  money,  the  Scots 
army  is  to  march  out  of  England,  and  to  give  up  all 
the  towns  and  garrisons  which  they  hold  in  this  king- 
dom, so  they  are  to  take  it  for  granted  that  'tis  the 
meaning  of  the  treaty  that  they  shall  leave  the  king  in 
the  hands  of  the  English  Parliament. 

To  make  this  go  down  the  better,  the  Scotch  Par- 
liament, upon  his  Majesty's  desire  to  go  with  their 
army  into  Scotland,  send  him  for  answer,  that  it  cannot 
be  for  the  safety  of  his  Majesty  or  of  the  State  to  come 
into  Scotland,  not  having  taken  the  Covenant,  and  this 
was  carried  in  their  Parliament  but  by  two  voices. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     295 

The  Scots  having  refused  his  coming  into  Scotland, 
as  was  concerted  between  the  two  Houses,  and  their 
army  being  to  march  out  of  England,  the  delivering  up 
the  king  became  a  consequence  of  the  thing — unavoid- 
able, and  of  necessity. 

His  Majesty,  thus  deserted  of  those  into  whose  hands 
he  had  thrown  himself,  took  his  leave  of  the  Scots 
general  at  Newcastle,  telling  him  only,  in  few  words, 
this  sad  truth,  that  he  was  bought  and  sold.  The 
Parliament  commissioners  received  him  at  Newcastle 
from  the  Scots,  and  brought  him  to  Holmby  House,  in 
Northamptonshire ;  from  whence,  upon  the  quarrels 
and  feuds  of  parties,  he  was  fetched  by  a  party  of 
horse,  commanded  by  one  Cornet  Joyce,  from  the 
army,  upon  their  mutinous  rendezvous  at  Triplow 
Heath ;  and,  after  this,  suffering  many  violences  and 
varieties  of  circumstances  among  the  army,  was  carried 
to  Hampton  Court,  from  whence  his  Majesty  very 
readily  made  his  escape ;  but  not  having  notice  enough 
to  provide  effectual  means  for  his  more  effectual  deliver- 
ance, was  obliged  to  deliver  himself  to  Colonel  Ham- 
mond in  the  Isle  of  Wight.  Here,  after  some  very 
indifferent  usage,  the  Parliament  pursued  a  farther 
treaty  with  him,  and  all  points  were  agreed  but  two  : 
the  entire  abolishing  Episcopacy,  which  the  king  de- 
clared to  be  against  his  conscience  and  his  coronation 
oath ;  and  the  sale  of  the  Church  lands,  which  he 
declared,  being  most  of  them  gifts  to  God  and  the 
Church,  by  persons  deceased,  his  Majesty  thought 
could  not  be  alienated  without  the  highest  sacrilege, 
and  if  taken  from  the  uses  to  which  they  were  ap- 
pointed by  the  wills  of  the  donors,  ought  to  be  restored 
back  to  the  heirs  and  families  of  the  persons  who 
bequeathed  them. 

And  these  two  articles  so  stuck  with  his  Majesty, 
that  he  ventured  his  fortune,  and  royal  family,  and  his 


296     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

own  life  for  them.  However,  at  last,  the  king  con- 
descended so  far  in  these,  that  the  Parliament  voted 
his  Majesty's  concessions  to  be  sufficient  to  settle  and 
establish  the  peace  of  the  nation. 

This  vote  discovered  the  bottom  of  all  the  counsels 
which  then  prevailed ;  for  the  army,  who  knew  if  peace 
were  once  settled,  they  should  be  undone,  took  the 
alarm  at  this,  and  clubbing  together  in  committees  and 
councils,  at  last  brought  themselves  to  a  degree  of 
hardness  above  all  that  ever  this  nation  saw ;  for,  call- 
ing into  question  the  proceedings  of  their  masters  who 
employed  them,  they  immediately  fall  to  work  upon 
the  Parliament,  remove  Colonel  Hammond,  who  had 
the  charge  of  the  king,  and  used  him  honourably,  place 
a  new  guard  upon  him,  dismiss  the  commissioners,  and 
put  a  stop  to  the  treaty ;  and,  following  their  blow, 
march  to  London,  place  regiments  of  foot  at  the  Par- 
liament-house door,  and,  as  the  members  came  up, 
seize  upon  all  those  whom  they  had  down  in  a  list  as 
promoters  of  the  settlement  and  treaty,  and  would  not 
suffer  them  to  sit ;  but  the  rest  who,  being  of  their 
own  stamp,  are  permitted  to  go  on,  carry  on  the  designs 
of  the  army,  revive  their  votes  of  non-addresses  to  the 
king,  and  then,  upon  the  army's  petition  to  bring  all 
delinquents  to  justice,  the  mask  was  thrown  off,  the 
word  all  is  declared  to  be  meant  the  king,  as  well  as 
every  man  else  they  pleased.  "Pis  too  sad  a  story,  and 
too  much  a  matter  of  grief  to  me,  and  to  all  good  men, 
to  renew  the  blackness  of  those  days,  when  law  and 
justice  was  under  the  feet  of  power ;  the  army  ruled 
the  Parliament,  the  private  officers  their  generals,  the 
common  soldiers  their  officers,  and  confusion  was  in 
every  part  of  the  government.  In  this  hurry  they 
sacrificed  their  king,  and  shed  the  blood  of  the  Eng- 
lish nobility  without  mercy. 

The  history  of  the  times  will  supply  the  particulars 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     297 

which  I  omit,  being  willing  to  confine  myself  to  my 
own  accounts  and  observations.  I  was  now  no  more 
an  actor,  but  a  melancholy  observator  of  the  misfortunes 
of  the  times.  I  had  given  my  parole  not  to  take  up 
arms  against  the  Parliament,  and  I  saw  nothing  to 
invite  me  to  engage  on  their  side.  I  saw  a  world  of 
confusion  in  all  their  counsels,  and  I  always  expected 
that  in  a  chain  of  distractions,  as  it  generally  falls  out, 
the  last  link  would  be  destruction  ;  and  though  I  pre- 
tended to  no  prophecy,  yet  the  progress  of  affairs  have 
brought  it  to  pass,  and  I  have  seen  Providence,  who 
suffered,  for  the  correction  of  this  nation,  the  sword  to 
govern  and  devour  us,  has  at  last  brought  destruction 
by  the  sword  upon  the  head  of  most  of  the  party  who 
first  drew  it. 

If  together  with  the  brief  account  of  what  concern  I 
had  in  the  active  part  of  the  war,  I  leave  behind  me  some 
of  my  own  remarks  and  observations,  it  may  be  pertinent 
enough  to  my  design,  and  not  unuseful  to  posterity. 

I.  I  observed  by  the  sequel  of  things  that  it  maybe 
some  excuse  to  the  first  Parliament,  who  began  this 
war,  to  say  that  they  manifested  their  designs  were  not 
aimed  at  the  monarchy,  nor  their  quarrel  at  the  person 
of  the  king  ;  because,  when  they  had  him  in  their  power, 
though  against  his  will,  they  would  have  restored  both 
his  person  and  dignity  as  a  king,  only  loading  it  with 
such  clogs  of  the  people's  power  as  they  at  first  pre- 
tended to,  viz.,  the  militia,  and  power  of  naming  the 
great  officers  at  court,  and  the  like ;  which  powers,  it 
was  never  denied,  had  been  stretched  too  far  in  the 
beginning  of  this  king's  reign,  and  several  things  done 
illegally,  which  his  Majesty  had  been  sensible  of,  and 
was  willing  to  rectify ;  but  they  havipg  obtained  the 
power  by  victory,  resolved  so  to  secure  themselves,  as 
that,  whenever  they  laid  down  their  arms,  the  king 


298     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

should  not  be  able  to  do  the  like  again.  And  thus  far 
they  were  not  to  be  so  much  blamed,  and  we  did  not 
on  our  own  part  blame  them,  when  they  had  obtained 
the  power,  for  parting  with  it  on  good  terms. 

But  when  I  have  thus  far  advocated  for  the  enemies, 
I  must  be  very  free  to  state  the  crimes  of  this  bloody 
war  by  the  events  of  it.  'Tis  manifest  there  were 
among  them  from  the  beginning  a  party  who  aimed  at 
the  very  root  of  the  government,  and  at  the  very  thing 
which  they  brought  to  pass,  viz.,  the  deposing  and 
murdering  of  their  sovereign ;  and,  as  the  devil  is 
always  master  where  mischief  is  the  work,  this  party 
prevailed,  turned  the  other  out  of  doors,  and  overturned 
all  that  little  honesty  that  might  be  in  the  first  beginning 
of  this  unhappy  strife. 

The  consequence  of  this  was,  the  Presbyterians  saw 
their  error  when  it  was  too  late,  and  then  would  gladly 
have  joined  the  royal  party  to  have  suppressed  this  new 
leaven  which  had  infected  the  lump ;  and  this  is  very 
remarkable,  that  most  of  the  first  champions  of  this  war 
who  bore  the  brunt  of  it,  when  the  king  was  powerful 
and  prosperous,  and  when  there  was  nothing  to  be  got 
by  it  but  blows,  first  or  last,  were  so  ill  used  by  this 
independent,  powerful  party,  who  tripped  up  the  heels 
of  all  their  honesty,  that  they  were  either  forced  by  ill 
treatment  to  take  up  arms  on  our  side,  or  suppressed  and 
reduced  by  them.  In  this  the  justice  of  Providence 
seemed  very  conspicuous,  that  these  having  pushed  all 
things  by  violence  against  the  king,  and  by  arms  and 
force  brought  him  to  their  will,  were  at  once  both 
robbed  of  the  end,  their  Church  government,  and 
punished  for  drawing  their  swords  against  their  masters, 
by  their  own  servants  drawing  the  sword  against  them  ; 
and  God,  in  His  due  time,  punished  the  others  too. 
And  what  was  yet  farther  strange,  the  punishment  of 
this  crime  of  making  war  against  their  king,  singled  out 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     299 

those  very  men,  both  in  the  army  and  in  the  Parlia- 
ment, who  were  the  greatest  champions  of  the  Presby- 
terian cause  in  the  council  and  in  the  field.  Some 
minutes,  too,  of  circumstances  I  cannot  forbear  observ- 
ing, though  they  are  not  very  material,  as  to  the  fatality 
and  revolutions  of  days  and  times. 

A  Roman  Catholic  gentleman  of  Lancashire,  a  very 
religious  man  in  his  way,  who  had  kept  a  calculate  of 
times,  and  had  observed  mightily  the  fatality  of  times, 
places,  and  actions,  being  at  my  father's  house,  was 
discoursing  once  upon  the  last  judgment  of  God  in 
dating  His  providences,  so  as  to  signify  to  us  His  dis- 
pleasure at  particular  circumstances ;  and,  among  an 
infinite  number  of  collections  he  had  made,  these  were 
some  which  I  took  particular  notice  of,  and  from 
whence  I  began  to  observe  the  like : — 

1.  That  King  Edward  VI.  died  the  very  same  day 
of  the  same  month  in  which  he  caused  the  altar  to 
be  taken  down,  and  the  image  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  in 
the  Cathedral  of  St.  Paul's. 

2.  That  Cranmer  was  burnt  at  Oxford  the  same 
day    and    month    that  he   gave    King   Henry   VIII. 
advice  to  divorce  his  Queen  Catherine. 

3.  That  Queen  Elizabeth  died  the  same  day  and 
month   that  she   resolved,  in   her   Privy   Council,  to 
behead  the  Queen  of  Scots. 

4.  That  King  James  died  the  same  day  that  he 
published  his  book  against  Bellarmine. 

5.  That   King   Charles's  long   Parliament,   which 
ruined  him,  began  the  very  same  day  and  month  which 
that  Parliament  began,  that  at  the  request  of  his  pre- 
decessor robbed  the  Roman  Church  of  all  her  revenues, 
and  suppressed  abbeys  and  monasteries. 

How  just  his  calculations  were,  or  how  true  the 


300     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

matter  of  fact,  I  cannot  tell,  but  it  put  me  upon  the 
same  in  several  actions  and  successes  of  this  war. 
And  I  found  a  great  many  circumstances,  as  to  time 
or  action,  which  befell  both  his  Majesty  and  his 
parties  first ; 

Then  others  which  befell  the  Parliament  and  Pres- 
byterian faction,  which  raised  the  war  ; 

Then  the  Independent  tyranny  which  succeeded  and 
supplanted  the  first  party ; 

Then  the  Scots,  who  acted  on  both  sides ; 

Lastly,  the  restoration  and  re-establishment  of  the 
loyalty  and  religion  of  our  ancestors. 

1.  For  King  Charles  I. ;  'tis  observable,  that  the 
charge  against  the  Earl  of  Strafford,  a  thing  which 
his  Majesty  blamed  himself  for  all  the  days  of  his  life, 
and  at  the  moment  of  his  last  suffering,  was  first  read 
in  the  Lords'  House  on  the  3Oth  of  January,  the  same 
day  of  the  month  six  years  that  the  king  himself  was 
brought  to  the  block. 

2.  That  the  king  was  carried  away  prisoner  from 
Newark,  by  the  Scots,  May  10,   the  same  day  six 
years  that,   against   his    conscience    and    promise,   he 
passed  the  bill  of  attainder  against  the  loyal,  noble  Earl 
of  StrafFord. 

3.  The  same  day  seven  years  that  the  king  entered 
the  House  of  Commons  for  the  five  members,  which 
all  his  friends  blamed  him  for,  the  same  day  the  Rump 
voted  bringing  his  Majesty  to  trial,  after  they  had  set 
by  the  Lords  for  not  agreeing  to  it,  which  was  the 
3rd  of  January  1648. 

4.  The  1 2th  of  May  1646,  being  the  surrender  of 
Newark,  the  Parliament  held  a  day  of  thanksgiving 
and  rejoicing,  for  the  reduction  of  the  king  and  his 
party,  and  finishing  the  war,  which  was  the  same  day 
five  years  that  the  Earl  of  StrafFord  was  beheaded. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     301 

5.  The  battle  at  Naseby,  which  ruined  the  king's 
affairs,  and  where  his  secretary  and  his  office  was 
taken,  was  the  I4th  of  June,  the  same  day  and  month 
the  first  commission  was  given  out  by  his  Majesty  to 
raise  forces. 

6.  The  queen  voted  a  traitor  by  the  Parliament  the 
3rd  of  May,  the  same  day  and  month  she  carried  the 
jewels  into  France. 

7.  The  same  day  the  king  defeated  Essex  in  the 
west,    his   son,   King    Charles   II.,   was  defeated  at 
Worcester. 

8.  Archbishop  Laud's  house  at  Lambeth  assaulted 
by  the  mob,  the  same  day  of  the  same  month  that  he 
advised  the  king  to  make  war  upon  the  Scots. 

9.  Impeached  the    I5th   of  December    1640,  the 
same  day  twelvemonth  that  he  ordered  the  Common 
Prayer- Book  of  Scotland  to  be  printed,  in  order  to  be 
imposed  upon  the  Scots,  from  which  all  our  troubles 
began. 

But  many  more,  and  more  strange,  are  the  critical 
junctures  of  affairs  in  the  case  of  the  enemy,  or  at 
least  more  observed  by  me : — 

1.  Sir  John  Hotham,  who  repulsed  his  Majesty  and 
refused  him  admittance  into  Hull  before  the  war,  was 
seized  at  Hull  by  the  same  Parliament  for  whom  he 
had  done  it,  the  same  loth  day  of  August  two  years 
that  he  drew  the  first  blood  in  that  war. 

2 .  Hampden  of  Buckinghamshire  killed  the  same  day 
one  year  that  the  mob  petition  from  Bucks  was  presented 
to  the  king  about  him,  as  one  of  the  five  members. 

3.  Young  Captain    Hotham    executed   the   ist   of 
January,  the  same  day  that  he  assisted  Sir  Thomas 
Fairfax  in  the  first  skirmish  with  the  king's  forces  at 
Bramham  Moor. 

4.  The  same  day  and    month,   being  the  6th  of 


302     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

August  1641,  that  the  Parliament  voted  to  raise  an 
army  against  the  king,  the  same  day  and  month,  anno 
1 648,  the  Parliament  were  assaulted  and  turned  out  of 
doors  by  that  very  army,  and  none  left  to  sit  but  who 
the  soldiers  pleased,  which  were  therefore  called  the 
Rump. 

5.  The   Earl  of  Holland  deserted  the  king,  who 
had  made  him  general  of  the  horse,  and  went  orer 
to  the  Parliament,  and  the  9th  of  March  1641,  carried 
the   Commons'  reproaching  declaration  to  the  king  ; 
and  afterwards  taking  up  arms  for  the  king  against  the 
Parliament,  was  beheaded  by  them  the  gth  of  March 
1648,  just  seven  years  after. 

6.  The  Earl  of  Holland  was  sent  to  by  the  king  to 
come  to  his  assistance  and  refused,  the  nth  of  July 
1641,  and  that  very  day  seven  years  after  was  taken 
by  the  Parliament  at  St.  Neots. 

7.  Colonel  Massey  defended  Gloucester  against  the 
king,  and  beat  him  off  the  5th  of  September  1643  » 
was  taken  after  by  Cromwell's  men  fighting  for  the 
king,  on  the  5th  of  September  1651,  two  or  three  days 
after  the  fight  at  Worcester. 

8.  Richard  Cromwell  resigning,  because  he  could 
not  help  it,  the  Parliament  voted  a  free  Commonwealth, 
without  a  single  person  or  House  of  Lords.    This  was 
the  25th  of  May  1658  ;  the  25th  of  May  1660,  the 
king  landed  at  Dover,  and  restored  the  government  of 
a  single  person  and  House  of  Lords. 

9.  Lambert  was  proclaimed  a  traitor  by  the  Par- 
liament April  the  2Oth,  being  the  same  day  he  pro- 
posed to  Oliver  Cromwell  to  take  upon  him  the  title 
of  king. 

10.  Monk  being  taken  prisoner  at  Nantwich  by  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax,  revolted  to  the  Parliament  the  same 
day  nineteen  years  he  declared  for  the  king,  and  thereby 
restored  the  royal  authority. 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     303 

11.  The  Parliament  voted  to  approve  of  Sir  John 
Hotham's   repulsing  the  king  at   Hull,  the   28th   of 
April  1642;  the  28th  of  April  1660,  the  Parliament 
first  debated  in  the  House  the  restoring  the  king  to  the 
crown. 

12.  The  agitators  of  the  army  formed  themselves 
into  a  cabal,  and  held  their  first  meeting  to  seize  on 
the  king's  person,  and  take  him  into  their  custody  from 
Holmby,  the  28th  of  April    1647  ;    the  same  day, 
1660,  the  Parliament  voted  the  agitators  to  be  taken 
into  custody,  and  committed  as  many  of  them  as  could 
be  found. 

13.  The  Parliament  voted  the  queen  a  traitor  for 
assisting  her  husband,  the  king,  May  the  jrd,  1643  » 
her  son,  King  Charles  II.,  was  presented  with  the 
votes  of  Parliament  to  restore  him,  and  the  present  of 
^"50,000,  the  3rd  of  May  1660. 

14.  The  same  day  the  Parliament  passed  the  Act 
for  recognition  of  Oliver  Cromwell,   October    I3th, 
1654,  Lambert  broke  up  the  Parliament  and  set  up 
the  army,  1659,  October  the  I3th. 

Some  other  observations  I  have  made,  which,  as  not 
so  pertinent,  I  forbear  to  publish,  among  which  I  have 
noted  the  fatality  of  some  days  to  parties,  as — 

The  2nd  of  September  :  The  fight  at  Dunbar  ;  the 
fight  at  Worcester ;  the  oath  against  a  single  person 
passed ;  Oliver's  first  Parliament  called.  For  the 
enemy. 

The  2nd  of  September :  Essex  defeated  in  Corn- 
wall ;  Oliver  died  ;  city  works  demolished.  For  the 
king. 

The  29th  of  May  :  Prince  Charles  born;  Leicester 
taken  by  storm  ;  King  Charles  II.  restored.  Ditto. 

Fatality  of  circumstances  in  this  unhappy  war,  as — 


304     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

1.  The   English  Parliament  calls  in  the  Scots,  to 
invade  their  king,  and  are  invaded  themselves  by  the 
same  Scots,  in  defence  of  the  king  whose  case,  and  the 
design  of  the  Parliament,  the  Scots  had  mistaken. 

2.  The  Scots,  who  unjustly  assisted  the  Parliament 
to  conquer  their  lawful  sovereign,  contrary  to  their  oath 
of  allegiance,  and  without  any  pretence  on  the  king's 
part,  are  afterwards  absolutely  conquered  and  subdued 
by  the  same  Parliament  they  assisted. 

3.  The  Parliament,  who  raised  an  army  to  depose 
their  king,  deposed  by  the  very  army  they  had  raised. 

4.  The  army  broke  three  Parliaments,  and  are  at 
last  broke  by  a  free  Parliament ;  and  all  they  had  done 
by  the  military  power,  undone  at  once  by  the  civil. 

5.  Abundance  of  the  chief  men,  who  by  their  fiery 
spirits  involved  the  nation  in  a  civil  war,  and  took  up 
arms  against  their  prince,  first  or  last  met  with  ruin  or 
disgrace  from  their  own  party. 

(i.)  Sir  John  Hotham  and  his  son,  who  struck  the 
fiist  stroke,  both  beheaded  or  hanged  by  the  Parliament. 

(2.)  Major-General  Massey  three  times  taken  pri- 
soner by  them,  and  once  wounded  at  Worcester. 

( 3. )  Major-General  Langhorn,  (4. )  Colonel  Poyer, 
and  (5.)  Colonel  Powell,  changed  sides,  and  at  last 
taken,  could  obtain  no  other  favour  than  to  draw  lots 
for  their  lives ;  Colonel  Poyer  drew  the  dead  lot,  and 
was  shot  to  death. 

(6.)  Earl  of  Holland ;  who,  when  the  House  voted 
who  should  be  reprieved,  Lord  Goring,  who  had  been 
their  worst  enemy,  or  the  Earl  of  Holland,  who,  ex- 
cepting one  offence,  had  been  their  constant  servant, 
voted  Goring  to  be  spared,  the  Earl  to  die. 

(7.)  The  Earl  of  Essex,  their  first  general ; 

)   Sir  William  Waller  ; 
9.)   Lieutenant-General  Ludlow; 
10.)  The  Earl  of  Manchester  ; 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     305 

— all  disgusted  and  voted  out  of  the  army,  though  they 
had  stood  the  first  shock  of  the  war,  to  make  way  for 
the  new  model  of  the  army,  and  introduce  a  party. 

In  all  these  confusions  I  have  observed  two  great 
errors,  one  of  the  king,  and  one  of  his  friends. 

Of  the  king,  that  when  he  was  in  their  custody,  and 
at  their  mercy,  he  did  not  comply  with  the  proposi- 
tions of  peace,  before  their  army,  for  want  of  employ- 
ment, fell  into  heats  and  mutinies ;  that  he  did  not  at 
first  grant  the  Scots  their  own  conditions,  which,  if  he 
had  done,  he  had  gone  into  Scotland  ;  and  then,  if  the 
English  would  have  fought  the  Scots  for  him,  he  had 
a  reserve  of  his  loyal  friends,  who  would  have  had 
room  to  have  fallen  in  with  the  Scots  to  his  assistance, 
who  were  after  dispersed  and  destroyed  in  small  parties 
attempting  to  serve  him. 

While  his  Majesty  remained  at  Newcastle,  the  queen 
wrote  to  him,  persuading  him  to  make  peace  upon  any 
terms ;  and  in  politics  her  Majesty's  advice  was  cer- 
tainly the  best.  For,  however  low  he  was  brought  by 
a  peace,  it  must  have  been  better  than  the  condition  he 
was  then  in. 

The  error  I  mention  of  the  king's  friends  was  this, 
that  after  they  saw  all  was  lost,  they  could  not  be 
content  to  sit  still,  and  reserve  themselves  for  better 
fortunes,  and  wait  the  happy  time  when  the  divisions  of 
the  enemy  would  bring  them  to  certain  ruin  ;  but  must 
hasten  their  own  miseries  by  frequent  fruitless  risings, 
in  the  face  of  a  victorious  enemy,  in  small  parties ;  and 
I  always  found  these  effects  from  it : — 

I.  The  enemy,  who  were  always  together  by  the 
ears,  when  they  were  let  alone,  were  united  and 
reconciled  when  we  gave  them  any  interruption  ;  as 
particularly,  in  the  case  of  the  first  assault  the  army 
made  upon  them,  when  Colonel  Pride,  with  his  regi- 

v 


306     Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier 

ment,  garbled  the  House,  as  they  called  it.  At  that 
time  a  fair  opportunity  offered ;  but  it  was  omitted 
till  it  was  too  late.  That  insult  upon  the  House  had 
been  attempted  the  year  before,  but  was  hindered  by 
the  little  insurrections  of  the  royal  party,  and  the  sooner 
they  had  fallen  out,  the  better. 

2.  These  risings  being  desperate,  with  vast  dis- 
advantages, and  always  suppressed,  ruined  all  our 
friends ;  the  remnants  of  the  Cavaliers  were  lessened, 
the  stoutest  and  most  daring  were  cut  off,  and  the 
king's  interest  exceedingly  weakened,  there  not  being 
less  than  30,000  of  his  best  friends  cut  off  in 
the  several  attempts  made  at  Maidstone,  Colchester, 
Lancashire,  Pembroke,  Pontefract,  Kingston,  Preston, 
Warrington,  Worcester,  and  other  places.  Had  these 
men  all  reserved  their  fortunes  to  a  conjunction  with 
the  Scots,  at  either  of  the  invasions  they  made  into  this 
kingdom,  and  acted  with  the  conduct  and  courage  they 
were  known  masters  of,  perhaps  neither  of  those  Scots 
armies  had  been  defeated. 

But  the  impatience  of  our  friends  ruined  all  ;  for  my 
part,  I  had  as  good  a  mind  to  put  my  hand  to  the  ruin 
of  the  enemy  as  any  of  them,  but  I  never  saw  any 
tolerable  appearance  of  a  force  able  to  match  the  enemy, 
and  I  had  no  mind  to  be  beaten  and  then  hanged. 
Had  we  let  them  alone,  they  would  have  fallen  into  so 
many  parties  and  factions,  and  so  effectually  have  torn 
one  another  to  pieces,  that  whichsoever  party  had  come 
to  us,  we  should,  with  them,  have  been  too  hard  for 
all  the  rest. 

This  was  plain  by  the  course  of  things  afterwards  ; 
when  the  Independent  army  had  ruffled  the  Presbyterian 
Parliament,  the  soldiery  of  that  party  made  no  scruple 
to  join  us,  and  would  have  restored  the  king  with  all 
their  hearts,  and  many  of  them  did  join  us  at  last. 

And  the  consequence,  though  late,  ended  so ;   for 


Memoirs  of  a  Cavalier     307 

they  fell  out  so  many  times,  army  and  Parliament, 
Parliament  and  army,  and  alternately  pulled  one  another 
down  so  often,  till  at  last  the  Presbyterians  who  began 
the  war,  ended  it,  and,  to  be  rid  of  their  enemies, 
rather  than  for  any  love  to  the  monarchy,  restored 
King  Charles  the  Second,  and  brought  him  in  on  the 
very  day  that  they  themselves  had  formerly  resolved 
the  ruin  of  his  father's  government,  being  the  2gth  of 
May,  the  same  day  twenty  years  that  the  private  cabal 
in  London  concluded  their  secret  league  with  the  Scots, 
to  embroil  his  father  King  Charles  the  First. 


THE    END. 


Printed  by  BALI.ANTYNE,  HANSON  &*  Co. 
Edinburgh  &°  London 


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COLLEGE  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


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